


The Silken Cord

by Mendeia



Series: The Silken Cord [2]
Category: Gundam Wing, Real Adventures of Jonny Quest
Genre: Action, Angst, BAMF!Quatre, Brotherhood, Crossover, Deeper Than Deep Friendship, Empathy, Gen, Humor, M/M, Merged Universes, Psychic Abilities, Team as Family, Terrorism, Violence, post-cannon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-11-26
Updated: 2013-03-24
Packaged: 2017-11-26 01:35:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 39
Words: 154,994
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/645073
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mendeia/pseuds/Mendeia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Quatre was just looking to make a friend, or, at least, make an appearance of such. The Quests were trying to enjoy some science. Who invited these terrorists anyway? Five ex-pilots, five too-smart-for-their-own-good adventurers, one dog, and enough mistrust, uncertainty, and loyalty to keep them busy. The story of family, the ties that bind, and how a steady heart can save the world.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Status Quo

**Author's Note:**

> Well, this is a new one for me. I have read what seems to be all the excellent Gundam Wing fic in the internet, and loved it, and now here I am trying to add to the library of awesomeness. I owe such an enormous debt to authors from both AO3 and fanfic.net like Dulin, Keithan, Misanagi, StandingOnTheRooftops, Violet Nyte, waterlilylf, Gecko Osco, and countless others. They blazed a trail of truly excellent and compelling storytelling, and I am humbled to walk that path and hope to offer my own steps to the journey.
> 
> On the other side, we have Jonny Quest, specifically, "The New Adventures" version. Sadly there is a fair sight less excellent fic in this universe. Not that there isn't any! But that the story I wanted to tell really hasn't been done in any incarnation that I could find, the characterizations that most interested me were not quite what I was hoping to see, and there's just so little of it. If I missed something good, please send me a recommendation!
> 
> This story is meant to be set in about After Colony 198 or so, a few years after the Eve wars and the Endless Waltz movie. I have ported the Quest family and some of their adventures into the Gundam Wing universe almost out of whole cloth, so you need less than the reading of the Wikipedia article to get caught up on that end. On the Gundam Wing side, context is a little more important.
> 
> This is an unapologetic 3x4x3 fic. As for anything else, well, I think you can read a few things here, and more as our story goes on. It's meant to be that way. Except that we won't see any Relena (or really any of the girls) – sorry. I'm not a basher, not at all. I just wanted to see our boys on their own.
> 
> The story is actually done, but I'm posting twice a week to not spam people. It came out super long, something like 150,000 words give or take a few thousand, and more than 300 pages. It went places I never expected. And it brought me a huge amount of joy to write. If I can give at least a tiny portion of that to you, I'll have done my job.
> 
> Okay, one disclaimer and on with the show:
> 
> I do not own any rights to anything that comes up in this story, Gundam Wing, Jonny Quest, you name it. This is for pure enjoyment and love of the fandom, not for profit. 
> 
> Enjoy!

It was a Tuesday morning around the Quest breakfast table when Dr Benton Quest arrived 15 minutes late with a notebook under one arm.

"What do you think?" Jonny asked, leaning over to Jessie. "Aliens spotted by the Mars terra-forming advance team?"

"More likely some friend gone missing between the L4 cluster and the moon," she whispered back.

"Can't you two just wait and find out?" Race popped his head between the pair, a sly smile on his face.

"Nope. While we may share in curiosity, unfortunately patience is something that has never been passed from myself to either Jonny or Jessie," Hadji said with a smiling superiority as he poured a cup of coffee and handed it to his adopted father.

"You're both wrong," Benton smiled, settling into his chair. He looked around the table, to his son Jonny, breakfast forgotten as he waited for his father's next works. Next to him, equally as eager but with slightly less recklessness in her excitement was Jessie. She had gotten that same unhealthy taste for adventure from her father, Race Bannon, who simply winked and took a sip of his own coffee. Hadji, adopted into the Quest family ten years prior, had never really gained the same devil-may-care streak as the others, but those who knew him best could tell he was intrigued as well, though he waited quietly before bestowing his own excitement.

"Okay, dad. Spill. Who calls you at six in the morning and keeps you talking that long? Through _breakfast_?" The emphasis on the meal made everyone smile – not because Benton Quest was overly fond of eating, but because if there were two rules in the Quest household they were: no touching, interfering with, or in any way interacting with any and all underway experiments, and no tardiness to meals. Their lives were hectic enough; the routine of eating together was sometimes the only thing that kept Dr Quest from working himself to death, Jonny from wandering too far into trouble, and everyone from going days without actually engaging one another.

"I've just had a call about a symposium to be held in Istanbul discussing new advances in programming and virtual reality. They want me to come and speak, and possibly give a preview of my latest project."

"Great! Are we going?" Jessie wanted to know.

"You're just hoping that dad will have to show you what he's been working on," Jonny laughed.

"You _have_ been pretty secretive on this one, Benton," Race put in. "It's not like you to keep so much of your work from us."

"I know. But this one, the possibilities for its applications to save lives, ease conditions working in space, it's a revolution waiting to happen. On the other hand, the risk is also very great."

"You mean that it could be used for violence?"

"Well, that's true, Hadji, but that's not what I was thinking. Instead, it poses some risk to the user, as the human interface is still pretty unstable. That's mostly why I don't want you kids in there. If you plugged yourselves in and something went wrong, there's no telling what the consequences would be." Dr Quest leaned back in his chair and breathed in the warmth of the steam rising from his coffee.

"This symposium. Anybody we know gonna be there?" Race asked.

"I'm not sure. I didn't check the guest list yet. But if it's half as well-funded as it claims to be, there will probably be a few familiar faces. And maybe I will get the chance to talk through some of the issues I'm having with some other experts. That more than anything else is why I said yes."

"And we're coming with you?" Jonny grinned.

"Yes, I think so. It will be educational, at least, and if I don't let Jessie and Hadji have the chance to hobnob with some of the world's leading programmers and scientists I'm sure they'll put salt in my coffee for a month," he replied with a smile.

"That's settled, then," Race nodded. "I'll take care of the hotel. You deal with the technical stuff, Benton. And you three," he fixed the trio with a look, "make sure you're up on all your studies so you do us proud talking circles around those famous brains."

Jonny, Jessie, and Hadji exchanged looks. A symposium of the Earth Sphere's finest might not have piqued the interest of the average teen, but these three had been chasing after adventure, science, and sometimes the unexplainable for most of their lives. Somehow, trouble seemed to follow the Quest team to the unlikeliest of places, and if this was going to be one of them, they had no intention of missing it.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Quatre?"

Iria peeked her head in the huge office door and looked for her brother. Instead of sitting at the desk, as was his usual position while sloughing through a 10-hour day, she found him at the window, a phone to his ear.

"I'm not sure when I'll be on Earth next," he was saying, "but I'll let you know. And thanks for the call. It's been too long. Oh! Iria needs me. I'll talk to you later. Be safe, Heero." He lowered the phone and turned to his sister.

"I didn't mean to interrupt," she began, smiling.

"It's all right. Heero's not much for communication, phone or vid or anything else. You've kind of got to be there. So, what can I do for you?" Quatre Raberba Winner smiled at his eldest sister, not the smile that put him on so many magazines, nor the smile that won victory in the boardroom, but the one just for his real friends and family. All the smiles reached his eyes – that was his secret – but this one didn't have a shark waiting in the corners to strike without warning.

"Quatre, did you ever meet Dr Benton Quest?" she asked, sitting in one of the chairs near the window. "He was a friend of father's, and they had a great deal in common, both in perspective and in interest."

"I know the name," Quatre replied, sitting beside her. "But I've never met him, I don't think. I've heard of him, of course. Systems design, chaos theory, environmental control advances – he's been connected to some of the greatest breakthroughs in the last two decades of science and technological engineering."

"Well, I happened to come upon a little-known symposium in Istanbul that he will be attending. It has had very little press and even less attention from corporate interests. And I was thinking it might be the perfect opportunity for you to sit down with him for a bit, introduce yourself, get to know him. You know. WEI could always use the contact, you know."

"What are you getting at, Iria?" Quatre asked, not unkindly. His eyes were alight with amusement, but there was the tiniest glint in them that bespoke the fact that Quatre missed nothing. Iria was firmly of the belief that it was somewhat annoying to try to be an older sister to a boy who could read you without effort and manipulate you with a boyish grin. She gathered herself.

"Quatre," she put a hand on his arm. "You have been working for WEI nonstop for the last eighteen months. The little time you've taken off has been spent on your...other interests. You spend all the days you're not in the office or at meetings or at high-end dinners with a set of remarkable but admittedly unusual young men."

"All true."

"You know I love you, little brother. And I'll always be here for you. But I think it might be time for you to have someone to talk to that isn't part of WEI. Or our family. Or your friends."

"What makes you say that?"

"Quatre," she sighed. "I don't...I can't understand you and your friends. What you've done, what you've seen, it's so far from the world I live in. But I do know that a boy your age needs more than board meetings and war memories. Father made mistakes in his lifetime, many with you, but his was a voice you respected. A perspective that guided you. And Dr Quest may be able to be a similar sort of friend to you, if you would let him. He's a father, too."

Quatre stood and moved to the window, wordlessly buying himself some time to think. Iria wasn't wrong about the fact that Quatre had spent almost no time at all with anyone who wasn't a part of his corporate life or his previous life as a Gundam pilot. After the Eve wars, and even before they'd been ended, he had held the reins of WEI, which was more than a full-time occupation. That, plus his status as a sometime-active Preventers agent joining forces with his friends to maintain the peace they had so painfully bought, meant Quatre's life was more than hectic.

He could see what Iria was trying to do. For weeks she'd been trying to help Quatre in her own way, setting up dinners where he was seated with her husband, or with some of those men on the board who were more like mentors than the scheming suits that more often populated the business world. He supposed it was logical. His sister, for all her kindness and compassion and even her willingness to try to listen to him, still came from their very traditional roots. And in those roots was the irrevocable dictum that a boy should grow in the shadow of his father. And Quatre no longer had one in her eyes.

Even so, he wasn't sure a replacement paternal influence was in his best interest. Quatre had struggled with his own father to the end, and finding a man he could now trust enough to treat as such would be more than unlikely. If he truly needed the wisdom of a tried leader, he could always speak to Rashid. But that would probably never be enough for Iria. And, after all, Dr Benton Quest might be a useful ally for WEI, if even half the things Quatre had read were true. He didn't need a father, not exactly, but he could always use more friendly, non-corporate partners, not to mention an appeased sister.

And he'd just finished telling Heero he would try to get back to Earth soon.

"All right," he turned back to Iria. "I'll have coffee with him while he's at the symposium if it will make you happy. I'll even take a few days off from WEI for it."

"I'm glad. I'll have your secretary make the arrangements," she stood to leave. When she reached the door, she looked back over her shoulder at him. "But you get to explain it to Trowa."

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Hadji! Hey, Hadji! Where are you? HADJI!"

Hadji slowly opened his eyes, breathing deeply and letting his shoulders readjust after the total relaxation of his meditation. He had only a few heartbeats more of quiet before Jonny came barreling into the upper room of the lighthouse.

"You bellowed, Jonny?" he asked, smiling a little.

"Sorry. I didn't know you were..." Jonny waved vaguely at Hadji's position on the mat. He had the grace to look at least a little sheepish for his intrusion.

"Well, thankfully I was just finishing. What's on your mind?" Hadji settled into a more informal position. Jonny dropped to sit facing him.

"Do you think I can do what Race said this morning?" was the unexpected question.

"If you mean going a whole week while remembering to take out the trash and avoiding constructing impossible room-destroying stuff in the bedroom, then no, probably not," Hadji teased gently. He knew Jonny meant something more serious, but giving him the out to laugh first had always proved to ease him into honesty.

"Thanks," Jonny made a face. "No, the whole talking circles around the scientists at the symposium thing."

"Well, sure. Why wouldn't you?" Hadji asked, genuinely confused.

"Because I'm not...I'm not like you and Jessie. I'm not...I don't think I'm that smart, Hadj."

That was a difficult thing to admit, and Hadji scooted slightly closer, putting a hand on the drooping shoulder.

"Jonny, you're very intelligent. How many times have you reprogrammed everything in the house and the lab? What brought this on?"

"It's just...it's not like when we were kids anymore. You and Jessie, you're more like dad. You're smart, really smart. And, okay, I'm not dumb. But I'm not interested in the same stuff. I know dad would be happy if I wanted to be a scientist like him, but I just don't think I can be. I'm more like Race, you know?"

"I had noticed," the Indian said wryly. Then, more seriously, "Jonny, you have nothing to be ashamed of. You're brave and strong and kind. You're loyal and you are smart in all the ways that matter. Your father doesn't mind that you aren't him made over in a new person. He will support you in whatever you choose to do with your life. I don't think you will ever need to become him to make him proud of you. He does not seem the type to ask you to walk his path just because he is your father."

"I bet you've got a proverb for this."

"As a matter of fact," Hadji smiled, "I do. 'A man whose steps are his own shall never march into a rainstorm.'"

"You know those don't even make sense sometimes, right?" Jonny teased.

"If they do not make sense, you have failed to learn the lesson," Hadji replied wryly. "But in this case, I believe you have. I am confident that your father will not be upset, nor even surprised should you turn away from his science for your future."

"Besides, he's got you for that, right?" Jonny smiled a little.

"Sure." But Hadji's smile wasn't as sure, and of course, Jonny would choose that moment to be perceptive.

"You're his son, too, Hadj. If one of us had to be like him, it's definitely you." But there was something he didn't like in Hadji's eyes, something of the fear of a boy alone in a new world with no certainty they could ever truly be wanted. In a fit of desperation he hadn't felt since he was much smaller and Hadji was so much newer to him, he said quickly, "You know we're your family, right? You know dad thinks of you like a son and everything."

"Yes, Jonny, I do," Hadji admitted. "Please, don't be concerned. I have not forgotten the kindness of your family to let me into your lives, and there is no place I would rather be."

"But...?"

"But," Hadji blew out a sigh, "while I was meditating, I found myself asking questions I have no means of answering. Questions about myself, about my place, my gifts. As much as I am like your father, we both know I am also unlike anyone else."

"Sure. You can do things nobody can, like the meditating thing and the astral projection thing and a bunch of other neat stuff. That doesn't make you less of a Quest. Just more interesting," Jonny pressed.

"Yes, but my questions cannot be answered by your father's science. Nor by Race's practical rationality, nor by Jessie's and your enthusiasm for both. For all I have a life here, a part of my soul is still a stranger. And there is an unsettling feeling growing within me that fears I will never find my answers in this life I lead."

"Hadji," Jonny's voice had gone serious and soft. "If you have to wander the stars to find something, we'll never stop you. Heck, I'll go with you if you let me! We've been through everything together, Hadj. You're my best friend and the best brother a guy could ever ask for. And that's going to be true whatever you do or wherever you go. But," and his light blue eyes blazed into the brown ones before him, "don't ever doubt that you are one of us. You are. You're a better Quest than me sometimes. And we wouldn't be family without you. Besides, aren't you always telling me that you're exactly where you're supposed to be? Sounds like a good time to believe it."

Hadji closed his eyes as a small smile lit his face. He was a young man and men don't cry – he'd been told that as a child before the kindness of the Quests who believed differently – but he allowed his breath to hitch once as he leaned forward and let Jonny grip his shoulders comfortingly.

"Thank you, my friend."

"Well, thank you for listening to me whine about the wrong things," Jonny returned. "I came up here feeling down and now I feel fine. And so should you. Come on – Jessie's got dinner duty tonight, so we might as well go heckle, ahem, I mean _help_ her with it, huh?"

"One of these days that karma you are building up is going to come and exact its revenge and I'm not going to do a thing to stop it," Hadji grinned, allowing Jonny to pull him to his feet.

"As long as it doesn't come in the form of that awful soup-stew-thing-with-noodles-and-sauerkraut Race made last month, I think I can handle it!" the blond laughed back.

Their companionable walk down the stairs soon became a race and they blew into the house with the wind, giggling and gasping, and both feeling better as they burst in the door of their home.

 

-==OOO==-

 

When Iria had said that Quatre was the one to "explain" this plan to Trowa, she hadn't fully grasped what the conversation would entail. She had assumed that Quatre would be explaining that he would be going on a business trip and Trowa would have to stay home because it wasn't his place to be there. In the long list of things his kind but slightly distant older sister didn't understand was his relationship with Trowa. It wasn't that Quatre had chosen to pair himself with a man that caused her consternation, though the same couldn't be said for others of his sisters.

No, what Iria had never managed to comprehend was why Quatre chose someone like Trowa.

> " _You could have anyone, man or woman, on L4 or L1 or the whole of the Earth Sphere, anyone you wanted," she'd said, eyebrows raised. The other colonies didn't make her short list of possible candidates, of course – they were not to the Winner standard. "Even if he did serve in the war with you, what makes a no-name pilot an appropriate match for the heir to the Winner line? He has no family, no connections, and even if you look beyond all the material things I know you despise, he does not even know how to live in our world, in our society. How can Trowa ever be an asset to you?"_
> 
> " _Iria, I love you, but I will not justify this to you or anyone. Trust me, sister, that what Trowa carries within him is beyond worthy. He is an asset to me in every way." Quatre had turned away, but before he'd left her to her startled thoughts he'd said, with rather a harshness in his voice, "And if you ever refer to Trowa as 'no name' in my presence again, I shall not forgive you."_

That was a year ago, and while Iria had softened to the young man her brother loved with time, she understood them little still.

As Quatre opened the door to the apartment he shared with Trowa, he felt the familiar rush of emotions greet him before the man himself appeared.

"You're nervous," was the first thing Trowa said, following Quatre as he divested himself of his briefcase, shoes, and suit-coat.

"Sometimes this bond is very annoying," Quatre teased back.

But he also meant it literally, though not as it applied to Trowa. Quatre's "space heart" as he'd called it had only grown more and more powerful until he was reliably able to read and gauge the emotions and sometimes even the motivations of anyone around himself. It had taken a fair bit of research, and then a large amount of practice with Wufei of all people, before he could control the input of so many hearts around him. Wufei still held many teachings from his own family line, and such gifts had not been totally unknown to them. Shielding and mastering his abilities had been trying for the young Arab, doubly so when trying to live a life as CEO of WEI and also as a sometimes-active Preventers agent when particularly specialized skills were needed.

In consequence, Quatre had found himself more and more aware of Trowa in particular, but all the Gundam pilots to a certain extent, able to pick up on their emotions even at a distance. And, to his surprise, he had learned that when he was in physical contact or relative proximity with Trowa, his own emotions became shared as well, allowing them a certain amount of communication. At moderate distance, Trowa could sense Quatre, though he could only pick up strong, raw emotions. The only other person with whom Quatre shared more than the average ability to read empathically was Heero; it was Heero's "death" that had sparked an initial and powerful connection between them, and as Quatre's abilities expanded, that connection had strengthened too.

But with Heero on Earth, that part of his heart was quiet, leaving him with the soft amusement and curiosity of his beloved.

"Tell me," Trowa said gently, placing a hand on the back of Quatre's neck both to calm him and tighten their awareness of one another. Trowa had adapted well to being the object of Quatre's ever-growing empathic abilities; then again, his life had never been calm or normal, so this was a more pleasant twist of fate than most he'd seen.

Quatre did, spilling out the unexpected call from Heero (with the former pilot of Wing Zero insinuating that he had come upon a situation that might need the attention of the only people Heero actually trusted) and the conversation with Iria. He explained her well-meaning but perhaps misguided desire to set him up with a father figure and mentor, and his own reasons for agreeing to the meeting.

Trowa listened patiently, waiting until the words had all found their way through Quatre's too-fast brain. Then at last he said, "I think you're dismissing Iria's point too easily, but that's of course up to you. Still, there aren't many powerful pacifists left either on Earth or in space, and Dr Quest is well-respected. And if the symposium is of interest to him, it might well be worth your time as well."

"I'll only be gone a few days," Quatre said, feeling his own nerves tighten as he came to the crux of it.

"No." Trowa's face was still and set, and only through their bond could Quatre read the slight amusement behind the firm determination of his face and most of his feelings.

"First of all, we were meant to go see Cathy that week, and we can't both cancel on her again, not after the last time."

"She'll be fine. She understands."

"Secondly," Quatre said a little desperately, "if I do attend the symposium, you would be bored to tears waiting for me in the shadows the way it always happens when I make a prolonged public appearance."

"I'm sure I can find something to do."

"Thirdly, I'm pretty sure Heero will kidnap me at some point for whatever it is he wouldn't say over a line he hadn't personally secured, and there's no way of knowing how that will go..."

"A perfect reason for me to be there with you to back you up. Or to cover for you."

"Trowa!" Quatre sighed exasperatedly.

"Face it," Trowa said, a small smile belying the hearty warmth running through their bond, "you just don't want me there solely because you're worried about me for some unknown reason. Now tell me that reason so I can dismiss it and we can start planning."

"Trowa," Quatre's bright eyes met Trowa's green and he got lost for an instant before remembering himself. "My sister is manipulating me. Or trying to. It doesn't work when I'm aware of it, of course. What she wants is for me to meet Dr Quest and have him take me under his wing and help me find my way or something. Without you. And I don't...I don't want you to have to play that game with me. You shouldn't have to deal with Iria's plan, and you shouldn't have to dance around me and Dr Quest while I sound him out. If he is as good a man as I hope he is, he won't be a problem. But if he isn't? I don't...I don't want anyone else to make you feel like you don't belong in my life."

The protective anger on his behalf, and the sorrow for the uphill battle Quatre was waging to earn Trowa's place amidst his family (not to mention a few rounds with the press) flared in his heart and Trowa brought their foreheads together. Quatre was always trying to shield him from everything, from the members of his family who weren't as well-meaning as Iria, from the public, from anyone who might remind him once again that he had nothing to offer the prince of the Winners.

"I love you, Quatre," he said simply, closing his eyes and breathing in Quatre's breath. "And I'm going with you. Because sometimes you need to remember that I'm not afraid to let you defend my honor, as Wufei would say, but I'm also not afraid to do it myself. Besides," and he opened his eyes and smiled, "I'm not letting you run off with Heero without me. Who knows when you'd come back?"

Quatre smiled. The fact that his bond with the Japanese ex-pilot was so strong could have been a point of contention in their relationship, but it wasn't. Trowa could feel Quatre's love – he knew he was safe and that Quatre would never leave him, no matter what was between him and anyone else. Trowa found the whole thing rather funny, since Quatre saw Heero as a brother to be protected and respected, and he knew Heero saw Quatre in exactly the same way with a lot of Heero's trademark paranoia thrown in.

"You're amazing," Quatre breathed.

Trowa leaned into the bond and let their emotions speak for them both. Wrapped up in so much love and care and trust, words weren't needed anymore.


	2. Unexpected

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still don't own any of it. Just love it all to pieces.
> 
> Enjoy!

"Hey, Ponchita! Got that book on sights in Istanbul?" Race called over his shoulder.

"Yeah, just a sec!" Jessie yelled back, digging furiously through her knapsack. Pulling out both the book in question and her camera, she darted back to where her father had been tearing apart his own luggage.

"Here you go, dad," she said. She eyed the mess he'd strewn over his bed but said nothing – nobody could make a wreck out of a suitcase faster than Race Bannon, doubly so when already in a hotel room and therefore all available surfaces were fair game for flying items.

"Thanks. What's that for?"

"Oh! Be right back!"

Jessie darted out of the room she was sharing with her dad this trip (as the hotel only had space to give them two rooms and there was no power in the world that would make Jessie share with the boys) and nearly careened into Dr Quest as she ducked into their next-door room.

"Sorry!" she called behind her, even as she brought up the camera.

"Jess! That is _not helpful_!"

"Oh, sure it is!" Hadji laughed.

Jessie gleefully snapped a few shots of Jonny, red-faced, hopelessly trapped in the coverlet from the bed, halfway lodged under the mattress, with Bandit licking his face and trying to get his tongue in his favorite person's ear.

"Do I want to know?" Race asked, poking his head in.

"No!" Jonny cried. "Bandit, stop that! It tickles...I can't...will you quit it...I'm trying to..."

"Jonny was attempting a new judo technique while I was unpacking," Hadji explained cheerfully. "I was surprised and must not know my own strength. Then Bandit got involved and..." he waved at the result.

"Don't know your own strength! You did this on...purpose...ahh Bandit!"

"As much as it amuses me to see my son so nicely hogtied and spending such quality time with his dog," Dr Quest grinned, "it is just about dinner time. So perhaps we should extricate him so we can all go find something to eat?"

With Dr Quest distracting Bandit, it was the work of a moment to free Jonny from the coverlet, and the work of a few more moments for him to get all the dog drool out of his hair and ears. But soon enough they were on their way to a nearby restaurant. Seated around the table in the cozy atmosphere, they turned to the events to come.

"So, Dr Quest," Jessie asked, "what's the schedule for tomorrow?"

"Well, technically the symposium starts at 10, but I had a very interesting call just before we left home, so I think I'll be a bit late."

"A call? From who?" Race wanted to know.

"Iria Winner."

"Winner? As in WEI?" Jonny was impessed.

"Of course. I knew Zayeed Winner many years ago. We had much in common, and I fully supported his pacifistic views and his attempts to encourage others to adopt them. We weren't exactly close friends, but we respected one another and I always enjoyed our conversations."

"Didn't Zayeed Winner die during the Eve wars? Something to do with his satellite?" Jessie asked.

"It's worse than that, kiddo," Race shook his head. "His own people opened fire on him because he wouldn't let his resources be used to manufacture weapons. They said later it was an accident, but I don't buy it. He was killed because he wouldn't put profit over people's lives."

"I believe you're right," Benton said sadly. "Iria was his eldest daughter. Zayeed was always a traditionalist, so all his assets and his position went to his son, Quatre. I'd met Iria several times, but she was a younger woman then. Now she's a part of the business herself."

"Quatre Winner? Now him I'd recognize," Jessie said. "He's only on the cover of half the magazines in existence every other month. Youngest CEO in history, and one of the wealthiest people on Earth or in the colonies."

"Not a fan, are you Jess?" Jonny teased.

"No! But you can't not have heard of him!" she protested.

"So what did Mrs Winner want?" Hadji asked politely.

"Well, as a matter of fact, she asked if I would be willing to meet with Quatre Winner for breakfast tomorrow morning. She said that Quatre has been working to take over his father's role and could use some advice. As a favor to my old friend, I agreed."

"That," Race smiled knowingly, "and you're just as curious as Jessie about him."

"Well, perhaps a bit. He's not much different in age from you three," he nodded at them, "but with so much on his shoulders I cannot imagine the pressure he must be under. I would like to see how much of his father is in him, and if there's something I can do to help keep Zayeed's hopes for the future alive through his son, I feel I owe him that."

"So you'll be late to the symposium?" Jonny was ducking Jessie's glare and happily changed the subject.

"Yes. Only by a little. I haven't heard anything about my being needed for the opening ceremonies and all that sort of thing, so I'm just as glad to avoid the unnecessary spectacle. Besides, perhaps by then a few of my colleagues will have arrived – I haven't seen anyone yet."

"Well, it's early yet," Race nodded. "All you scientists are the same. Fashionably late as always."

"Better not be late tomorrow, Dr Quest," Hadji put in. "We'll meet you in the hotel for lunch after your breakfast with Mr Winner and the first events of the day, if that's all right. I think Jonny and I have a bit more judo training to do!"

Everyone laughed, and they settled into a comfortable dinner before the coming busyness of the symposium would separate them.

 

-==OOO==-

 

Dr Benton Quest was nothing if not perceptive, so picking one particular person out of a crowd was no trouble for him. In spite of that, however, when he approached Quatre Raberba Winner, he had the distinct feeling that if the young CEO didn't want to be seen, he wouldn't be. For all that he was tirelessly famous, no one seemed to be giving him a second glance; there was something in his manner that made him seem like an expected part of the background. He was seated at a small table under an awning for the coffee shop chosen as their meeting place, a thick briefcase on the ground beside him. His suit was impeccable, but his manner wasn't that of a spoiled aristocrat, nor of an exhausted and overwhelmed child, though he could have legitimately been both.

Standing to greet Dr Quest, the Arab flashed a bright smile.

"Dr Quest? It's an honor to meet you. I'm Quatre Winner."

"I hope you haven't been waiting long," Benton said, shaking the offered hand warmly. "I was a bit delayed escaping the hotel this morning." He smiled a bit, remembering Bandit's morning antics. He believed that dog would be 50 before he'd stop acting like a puppy.

"Not at all. Thank you so much for meeting me on such short notice." The blond smiled again, then moved to sit, simultaneously summoning a barista to order something for Dr Quest.

When they both had steaming cups of strong, rich coffee before them, Benton began with the usual pleasantries about the symposium and this surprise at fact that Quatre would be in attendance as well; he had professed a love of may different disciplines, and Dr Quest could only agree.

"Mr Winner," and it did feel odd calling someone his son's age "mister" but he had certainly earned it given his role in WEI, "I do want to say I'm so sorry about the loss of your father. Zayeed Winner was a good man, and I'm sure he is very much missed."

"Thank you for saying so," he replied gently. "My father and I did not always see eye-to-eye, but he was a good man and his intentions were honest. He believed in peace, and I have tried to do the same in his stead."

"So I've heard," Benton nodded. "WEI is doing very well, and the charitable projects to continue rebuilding after all the conflict is as fine a memorial as any I can think of."

"It's something like this that brings me here today," Quatre shifted into a more professional tone. "My sister believes that your past association with our father means you might be open to working with us, should your interests and ours converge."

"I believe that would be possible. I advised Zayeed a time or two in the past, after all," Dr Quest smiled. This was a suave young man indeed. "Did you have something in mind?"

"Not at present, but if something comes about..."

He trailed off suddenly, and Benton, following his line-of-sight, turned just in time to see the beginnings of a fireball billowing out the large front entrance of his hotel.

The explosion rocked the cafe, even though they were more than a block away. Quatre, moving with surprising speed, had grabbed Dr Quest's arm and thrown them both behind the table for cover, thus sparing them any flying debris.

"What happened?" Dr Quest asked, rubbing his head and looking around.

"Those were high-grade explosives," Quatre said, eyes hardening. "No accident and certainly no amateurs. And," as he turned to the still shaken man, "probably they're after you or me. We're the statistically most likely targets. It's pure luck neither of us was inside. No one knew we were meeting here before attending the symposium."

"My family," Dr Quest stood up. "They're still inside. We have to get to them."

"We will. I promise." Quatre picked up his briefcase and strode around the corner, his movements controlled and utterly calm. It took Dr Quest a moment to overcome his own shakiness and follow.

"But the authorities...there's no way they'll send a force in until they know what they're dealing with. And if those terrorists or whoever they are start with hostages..."

He trailed off after taking in the change he saw in Quatre. The young man had settled down with his laptop on his knees and was typing almost too fast to be believed; from what he could see, Benton surmised he was connecting his laptop to some kind of secure network. A moment later, he pulled an earpiece from the bag and clipped it in place.

"Zero Four to Zero Five. Do you copy?"

"Copy, Zero Four. What's happened? You don't use this signal without an emergency," came a voice.

"Attack at the symposium in Istanbul. I am on site with probably the most likely target for the attack other than myself. However, there are hostages inside of value to the target and," he glanced quickly at Dr Quest before saying, "I don't think he's going to wait for the cavalry."

"I understand. The report is coming in now. From what I can see, I agree with your assessment."

"Zero Five, get the case. Something tells me this is one for us and we'll need official authorization."

"Acknowledged."

"Zero Four to Zero Three."

"Zero Three here." A different voice from the first, also male, and rather clipped.

"Are you monitoring?"

"Always."

"I'm going to have to go in there and get Dr Quest's family out. We cannot allow them to be used as leverage against Dr Quest. And if we wait for the locals, there's no telling what the terrorists will do in the meantime. I'm going to need an extraction, probably under fire. Use whatever you need to set it up."

"I'll handle it. Zero Four..." the words trailed off, a note of doubt in his voice. But Quatre didn't stop to listen.

"Zero Four to Zero One and Zero Two."

"Zero One. I'm already hacking the hotel's security. I'll have visuals in 30 seconds." If the second voice was clipped, this one was chipped from an ice block it was so flat and if not cold, devoid of sentiment.

"Figures you were spying on him already. Zero Two in," came a new chuckle, bright and cheery. "I take it we're going to be on call for a few days?"

"Sounds like it. All accounted for; I'm opening the channel. In case any of you weren't already monitoring, I'm going in to retrieve the family of the primary target. Zero Three will arrange for transport and extraction. Zero Five is handling the official matters. Zero One will back me on security. Everyone, if you haven't already, start your preparations to join us. We'll rendezvous at Rock Island."

Dr Quest rarely found himself entirely dumbstruck, but this was one of those moments. Mere minutes ago he had been speaking with the suave and confident CEO of WEI. Now, instead of the Quatre Winner who had smiled at him over a cup of expensive coffee, he was looking at something else entirely. This boy – and he _was_ a boy, Benton remembered with a bit of a start, not much older than Jonny – was obviously far more than a business prodigy.

But as he began talking through the logistics of what he obviously intended to do while arranging some security to look after the "target" in the meantime, Benton cleared his throat.

"Excuse me. Mr Winner? I'm sure you've got everything in hand," he gestured at the screen, half of which was already showing live feed from inside the hotel and the other half of which displayed what could only be the blueprints for the building (and how he had gotten them so fast Benton would love to know). "But you're not going in without me. That's my family. So please take that into consideration."

"Dr Quest, that is highly inadvisable. The risk to yourself would be great."

"Listen to me, Mr Winner. That is my family. We've been through a lot, and we're none of us afraid of danger. But if you think I'm going to sit here and wait while you try to sneak into a hotel-jacking by terrorists, _by yourself_ , to find my family, you're wrong on all counts. Now, I'm coming with you, and that's that," he said in his best no-arguments-will-be-tolerated tone.

"I assure you, I can handle myself." But there was a light of challenge in his bright eyes. "But it is true that your presence would save me a fair amount of convincing on the part of your family."

"Zero Five to Zero Four."

"Go ahead."

"Authorization acquired. You have a go for whatever you need to do. But," and there was hesitation in the voice, "if you do decide to take an untrained civilian in there, I can't get you authorization for him to have live rounds." He'd said "untrained civilian" the way someone might say "worthless slug."

"I expected as much. However, I am prepared, as you well know."

"Zero One in. If you think the target would not be a risk to the mission, decide to take him and go. I have located his family. As of now, they have not been found by the intruders. You should try to reach them before anyone else does."

"Zero Two in. I've got transport to Earth, but I'm hours out. You're going to have to do your breaking and entering without me. Sorry about that. Make me proud!"

"Zero Three in. I'm working on the extraction. Just tell me when you've got a clear place for pickup. And don't do anything you'll regret."

"Acknowledged. Okay. I'm switching to the headset now. Dr Quest?" He opened his briefcase and clicked a hidden latch, releasing a false bottom. To the scientist's surprise, the compartment was stocked with weaponry. A small pistol was loaded with a red clip and handed to him. "Can you use this? It's just a neuro-suppressant tranquilizer."

"I know how to fire a gun, yes," Benton replied uneasily. He didn't voice the question in his mind, though – "Why do _you_ know how to fire a gun?"

To his surprise, the young CEO expertly loaded and checked another gun with the same red cartridge, and then one with a more ominous black one. He tucked both out of sight in his suit-coat. He then packed the laptop back into the bag and pulled at the broad shoulder-strap. A moment later, the briefcase had been converted to a close-fitting backpack.

"Zero Four to Zero One. Current location of Dr Quest's family?" After a pause, "Then I'll want to use the western stairwell. Which conference room is empty?" He nodded curtly. "Exactly my plan. Keep an eye on the target's family so I don't end up chasing them throughout the building."

"Dr Quest?" The Arab turned his intense eyes up and Benton wondered if he was going mad. "I need you to trust me. I do know what I'm doing. I've got help and backup ready for when we need it. I will get your family out, I promise. Are you sure you want to come with me?"

"Yes, I'm sure." It might be the only thing he was sure of, but better that than nothing. "But, Mr Winner..."

"Call me Quatre," he smiled. "And yes, I'm certain we're going to have a very long conversation after this is done. But only after we get your family and yourself to safety. Now, come with me. We're going to get in through the conference rooms on the ground floor on the west side. We need to move."

As Benton fell in behind Mr Winner, Quatre, he looked at the gun in his hands. Race would know better than he, but even not being an expert he was pretty sure this was not a standard model. He shook himself. This was no time to focus on the wrong details. He was about to follow a boy into a very dangerous situation, a situation that, by rights, he should be keeping said boy from at all costs. But there was a note of command when Quatre spoke, one that almost compelled him to follow. And, as he had no way of getting his family to safety without help, he supposed he could only trust that the competence he'd seen so far extended to whatever they were about to encounter.


	3. Extraction

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own Jonny Quest or Gundam Wing. I just decided to mix them together and see how it turned out. So far, it's rising slowly, but I've got faith we can pound it down a few times and get something great out of it.
> 
> Enjoy!

Quatre led the way to the window he intended to use to get them into the building, a hundred things flashing through his mind. Trowa, he could tell, was worried; he could identify it just by his voice. But Trowa knew that Quatre was just as capable as any of them, so he hadn't wasted their time by saying anything about it. Still, it was a gnawing awareness that Quatre had to push away and shield against so he could concentrate. He could also feel Dr Quest's worry and fear and curiosity and protectiveness all cycling through rather quickly. The man obviously loved his family very much, and when he'd said he would not be left behind, he had meant it.

That made Quatre smile a bit. They were an unlikely team, a prodigiously young CEO and a middle-aged scientist, charging headfirst into an enemy-occupied hotel to rescue some hostages. But Quatre figured their odds were pretty good. Heero, paranoid as ever, had apparently gotten hold of the blueprints for the building whenever he'd found out in that mysterious way of his that Quatre would be there. Wufei had them covered with the Preventers – not that Lady Une would have it any other way. It was rare for Quatre to use his clout with the Preventers, but he was a good agent, and, more importantly, he had been a brilliant Gundam strategist. When Quatre gave advice, Une tended to take it. So all Wufei had needed to do was tell her that "Quatre says this one is ours" and she would have chosen to back him.

With Heero pouring a running commentary into his ear about the locations of guards and cameras and the movements of the Quest family, Quatre easily visualized the building, inside and out, thanks to the plans Heero'd sent over the secure connection. And from what he was hearing, the Quest family seemed to live up to their reputation for not only landing in trouble, but getting out of it. Already they'd evaded two guards and knocked out a third.

Quatre crept up to the window he wanted, careful to pin himself to the building to avoid any prying eyes from elsewhere. From his pocket came the multi-tool Duo had given everyone as a gift last year, and it included a very, very strong glass cutter. He silently apologized to Wufei, knowing that breaking _in_ to the scene of a terrorist action would mean extra paperwork, but he had been given permission to do what he needed to do, after all.

Dr Quest appeared at his elbow, having moved surprisingly smoothly and quietly from the shadow of the adjacent building. He didn't say anything, just waited while Quatre began cutting them a way in. Quatre nodded to himself. Hopefully the scientist would be this sensible for the whole mission. His life, and Quatre's, might depend on it.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"What now, Race?" Jonny asked, leaning close to the man while they both peeked around a corner.

"Well, your dad is probably worrying himself to bits, so I'd say our first order of business is to get out of here in one piece. We're outmanned and outgunned and we don't know what they're after, so this isn't a time for heroics."

"I'm in favor of that," Jessie commented. "I grabbed Dr Quest's bag with all of his research and his computer, so that stuff won't fall into the wrong hands."

"Good work, kid," her dad flashed a smile at her. "Now, there's probably a stairwell at the end of this hallway..."

"Race?"

Hadji's voice, spoken softly, had that particular quality to it that always made everyone stop and look at him. His eyes were very slightly unfocused and he looked a little confused.

"What is it?" Jonny asked, setting himself at his elbow.

"I...have the strangest feeling that we ought to go this way," and pointed opposite the direction Race had indicated. "That help will come to us faster down this path."

Now, Race Bannon trusted very few things in the world. Another man's hunches or gut feelings wouldn't have moved him so much as an inch. But with Hadji, and with Jessie and Jonny for that matter, he'd learned to believe in them. They were good kids, all of them, and more often right than wrong. And Hadji had always had a sort of knack for things that were hard to explain. He'd take that kid's best guess over most people's solid facts.

"Okay. I stand corrected. We'll go Hadji's way," he said, turning and leading the way down the corridor.

"Hadj?" Jonny said hesitantly.

"It's...I don't know, Jonny. But I'm sure."

"Good enough for me," he said, nodding. He met his adopted brother's eyes and smiled. Sometimes Hadji was so unsure of himself, and this from a guy who had figured out stuff Jonny was still trying to make work for him. But Hadji and Jonny had saved one another's lives more than once. Like he'd said, it was good enough for him.

"Me too," Jessie said softly, "but better if we actually put it to use," and she tugged them both after her father. Bandit, in his infinite doggy wisdom, followed them quietly.

At the end of that corridor they came upon a very narrow hallway, almost invisible in the décor, obviously used by the hotel staff rather than guests. This led them to a back stairwell, little used, probably, and very much out of the way. None of them outwardly relaxed, because they were still in a great deal of danger, but they all breathed a bit easier – getting out would be less difficult if they could move about without running into anyone.

That said, they'd gone down two flights of stairs when the door behind them swung open.

"Hey! Stop where you are!" one shouted, brandishing a very large automatic weapon.

"Do as he says," Race said under his breath, a little needlessly. Even at their most reckless, not one of the trio would charge two armed thugs with weapons that big pointed at them. They needed a better moment and they needed to be unharmed to use it. They nodded at Race and put their hands up in the universal gesture of surrender.

"You think if we gut one of them that Dr Quest might take the boss's invitation a little more seriously?"

"Now, we're cooperating," Race said reasonably. "You don't need to do anything foolish here."

"Quest is the foolish one. But he'll come running with one of you bleeding, don't you think?" one looked at the other. They both smiled savagely.

And the next moment, they were both dropping to the ground.

The Quest team whirled in place to see two individuals standing on the landing of the stairwell one level below them. One was Benton himself, looking unhurt and pretty relieved that they were in a similar state. But the other was the kid they'd seen on every magazine in the Earth Sphere, the CEO of WEI. Quatre Raberba Winner was standing beside Benton with a gun in his hands.

"Did...?" Jessie began to ask.

"Just tranqs," he said quietly. Then he put a hand to his ear. "Zero Four to Zero Three. Targets acquired. ETA to extraction?"

"Dad, are you okay?" Jonny asked, moving down the steps to stand beside his father.

"I'm fine. Are all of you okay?"

"Not a scratch, Benton," Race said. "Didn't expect to see you here, though." He looked pointedly at Benton's companion but didn't voice his many questions.

"Mr Winner, that is, Quatre has arranged for us to make an escape," Benton said. "He's apparently a bit more than a corporate tycoon." That understatement was met by a smile from the blond in question.

"Zero Four to Zero One," Quatre said. "Confirm route to roof extraction point?"

"Who is he talking to? What's with the numbers?" Jessie wanted to know. But Dr Quest just shrugged and motioned for them to wait.

"Understood." Quatre lowered his hand and smiled at the confused faces around him. "I'm sorry. This isn't a good time for introductions. But I've got transport on the way, and my contact has helped identify the safest route to get to the roof. If you would please follow me, we have to leave this stairwell as someone is about to come looking for your friends up there," he pointed at the unconscious goons.

"Um, lead the way, then," Race shrugged.

"Here. You may need this." He held out the gun he'd used, grip first, to Race. "There are 15 rounds left."

Race traded looks with Benton, who nodded, before taking the gun and checking it himself. To his astonishment, the boy pulled another from inside his jacket, but this one didn't have the telltale red cartridge visible at the bottom of the grip. "So not all tranqs, huh?" he thought.

But Benton had obviously trusted this kid, and certainly he seemed to know what he was doing. Well, in his time with the Quests Race Bannon had gone along with stranger and worse plans than his, so he'd follow the rest for now. But he set himself as rear guard and promised himself to keep a sharp eye out, not only for the family under his protection, but the kid ostensibly doing the protecting.

 

-==OOO==-

 

As Quatre moved down the seventh-floor hallway, cognizant of his surroundings, he cast his eyes back at the group following him. In between giving him instructions and being needled by Duo – because even a dangerous operation couldn't prevent Duo from making use of an open channel to poke fun at people – Heero had quickly fed Quatre a few pertinent pieces of information about his "targets." Including the previously-sealed record of one Roger "Race" Bannon, a number of incident reports from around the world, and a fair amount of speculation. If he had to guess, Quatre would have said Heero was trying to warn him that this Quest family might not be what they seemed.

But Quatre had access to more than just data and reports.

Directly behind him was Dr Benton Quest. His emotions were steady, reflecting similar concern, fear, protectiveness, and determination from before. He had spiked with relief and love when they'd come upon his family in the stairwell, but now he had turned his mind towards getting them out. Quatre was surprised, and a bit touched, to find that that protectiveness extended to himself as well – apparently Dr Quest was a very caring man to keep the safety of a relative stranger in his thoughts when in such danger.

Next came Jonny Quest, followed closely by Hadji Singh Quest and Jessie Bannon. Quatre breezed quickly through reading Jonny – he was everything a green soldier would have been in that situation, from unhealthily excited to grim and focused with spikes of errant bravery. Jessie, too, wavered between a more tempered and reasonable fear and protectiveness and the brighter desire to take action, to do more than creep through hallways. In both of them Quatre read courage and selflessness and a strong bond to the others, but neither was particularly cautious nor cowed by their circumstances.

But when Quatre's empathy reached out for Hadji, he almost stopped walking in surprise. There was just so... _much_ there. And it wasn't just emotion he was sensing, either. The surface emotions were simple enough – calm determination, curiosity about Quatre, concern for the safety of his family, and a bit of fear, though it was mostly wrapped up in a strange sense of acceptance – but that isn't what so arrested Quatre's attention. But what that might be, he couldn't easily identify, and that intrigued him. Hadji, he now knew, was so much more than he seemed.

Wrenching himself away before he got too distracted, Quatre brushed over Race Bannon, unsurprised to learn that Race, with all the experience of an old campaigner, was calm, focused, and unwaveringly brave. He was also highly protective of the Quest family and not a little suspicious of Quatre himself. Well, that was all right then, Quatre reasoned. If their positions were reversed, he would not have been quick to accept help from a total stranger either.

"Zero One to Zero Four," came in his ear. "There is an access shaft that stretches from just above the ceiling tiles on this level all the way to the roof. You just need to push aside the foam section of ceiling and the ladder will be within reach. The shaft is in front of you, two meters from where this hallway intersects the next one."

Heero's voice was collected and nearly emotionless. Unless you knew what you were looking for. Quatre could hear that Heero was also worried about him, and that he was highly impatient about something. Probably that he wasn't on-site to help. Heero, for all his stoic appearance, was the biggest worrier of the ex-Gundam pilots. They might tease Quatre for taking on the faults and burdens of the whole world, but when something went wrong, Heero was the first to be upset when he wasn't there to make it right.

"Copy, Zero One," he said softly into the earpiece. Then he turned back to the others. "Wait just a moment, please."

Quatre moved up a step or two and counted the ceiling tiles. The sixth one out from the light that marked where the hallways met had to be the one Heero meant. He would have sighed except that he didn't intend to let the Quests see him as anything but totally confident. Still, he wished Trowa were here. Trowa could have made this look effortless. Or Wufei. Wufei could have pulled this off with grace. Even Duo could have done this with more ease. Curse it for being the shortest of the pilots!

Taking a deep breath, Quatre sprinted the last few steps to build up momentum. Then he jumped, pushing upwards with both hands as he went. He hit the ceiling tile and it popped loose with almost no resistance at all. In the single instant his head was at the level of the ceiling, Quatre spotted the ladder and stretched for it. It involved a slight amount of flailing, and he did have to kick his legs once he'd grabbed it with one hand to get enough purchase to pull himself up, but at least he hadn't fallen back to the floor. If Duo'd even seen that, though, he'd have been rolling on the ground laughing at Quatre in one of his beautifully-tailored suits wriggling halfway into the ceiling.

Pulling himself up through the gap he'd made, Quatre set one foot on the more stable brackets that held up the flimsy tiles, then reached a hand back down into the hallway.

"Dr Quest?" he called softly. "We'll be going this way."

"You go ahead," Dr Quest pushed Jonny forward, the dog tucked under an arm.

Quatre bit back his perfectly logical arguments about how Dr Benton Quest was the real target here and therefore needed not to sacrifice his safety, about how he was pretty sure he could haul even the muscular Race Bannon up into the ceiling himself but didn't know if Jonny could say the same, about how he didn't want to be overruled on his own mission. But he knew time mattered more than any of that, and arguing would cost them. So Quatre merely waited until Jonny made a leap of his own and caught the outstretched hand. He swung the kid into the space easily.

"Hold onto the ladder but don't go up very far," he ordered, and it _was_ an order. "The roof isn't secured yet."

Dr Quest would not accept Quatre's hand until Jessie and Hadji had also been pulled up into the ceiling. When the young Indian man's hand found Quatre's, he couldn't deny the electricity of the contact. And he didn't need to be an empath to know that Hadji had felt the same thing from the brightness of the dark eyes that met his. But again, time was of the essence, so he ignored the wide-eyed look and the palpable desire to unshield his mind and simply pulled him to the ladder and ordered him to make space.

Once Dr Quest was safely in the access shaft, Quatre figured he'd leave hauling the larger (and less trusting) Race Bannon to the Quest family and shimmied his way past them in the narrow vertical space. Two men couldn't have climbed shoulder-to-shoulder, but one narrow Arab certainly could squeeze past any of the three teens.

"I'm going up to clear the roof," he told them. "Do not come out until I call for you, or someone who identifies himself as Zero Three comes to get you."

Not waiting for an answer, Quatre continued upwards. "Zero Three, ETA?"

"Two minutes."

"Zero One, roof status?"

"You're armed, right?" was the answer. Quatre replied in the affirmative. Heero's voice was cool across the channel. "Good. So are they."

 

-==OOO==-

 

Jonny looked up the dark shaft where Quatre Raberba Winner was now climbing at a rapid pace towards the rooftop hatch.

"I don't know what to think about him," he said. "I mean, he's one of the richest people in the world. He runs the company that made the colonies and life in space possible. And he's our age."

"Well, we've done some pretty remarkable things," Jessie pointed out, taking Bandit so Jonny could help his father pull Race into the ceiling.

"Yes but...there is something about him that is unique," Hadji said quietly. When Jonny looked at him questioningly he held up his hands. "I don't know what it is, not yet. But I believe we should trust him."

"You and your hunches," Race said, but there was no bite to his words. "I suppose you agree, Benton?"

"Yes, I do, Race. But it will be an interesting conversation we have with him after we get out of this." Dr Quest straightened up and looked towards the top of the shaft where Quatre had already vanished. "So let's go help our new friend, shall we?"

"On it, dad!" Jonny grinned, scurrying up the ladder with all speed. With Race closing the ceiling tile, his father not a particularly fast climber, and Jessie stuck with one arm holding Bandit, only Hadji could follow at his heels as he raced after their unlikely rescuer.

But none of the Quests were slow, so by the time Jonny and Hadji had unlocked the hatch (and how exactly had Quatre Raberba Winner locked it behind him anyway?) they had caught up. Hearing gunfire, however, Race pulled the boys' heads back down and, after a moment, eased the hatch up carefully. Seeing nothing that was an immediate threat, he jumped from the top of the ladder to a crouch behind a fan turbine.

"Okay, come on, but keep your heads low," he whispered across the expanse. Jonny repeated his movements exactly, earning him a nod of approval. Hadji flowed across the open rooftop in a manner of his own, but it got the job done. Even with Bandit under her arm, Jessie improved upon her dad's version with a smirk. Dr Quest was a lot less graceful, a bit less stealthy as well, but he joined them anyway.

So it was the whole group that peeked around the corner together to a surprising sight.

A few yards away, Quatre Winner was squaring off against two very large men with more large automatic firearms. A bit beyond, a third man was down, either dead or unconscious. As they watched, the boy neatly disarmed both men, upsetting their balance as well so they toppled to the ground. It was flawless technique, and it looked effortless. He coolly pointed one unwieldy weapon each at the two, even though he looked as if he shouldn't have been able to handle either one-handed.

"Mr Bannon?" he called almost congenially, not even looking up from his attackers. "If you wouldn't mind, please?"

"Sure thing," Race said, pulling the tranq gun he'd been given and shooting each twice. They keeled over at once. "And for that stunt, you can call me Race."

"Zero Four to Zero Three. We're ready for extraction."

The words had barely left his mouth when the sound of a helicopter came up from the east. It was a relatively large military chopper, easily big enough to fit all of them. As it made to land on the roof, a door opened nearby and a few more men spilled out.

"Go!" Quatre ordered, turning around.

Again, that command in his voice was absolute, such that even Race was most of the way to the helicopter before he realized he'd taken direction from the kid. But that kid was providing textbook-perfect cover, and Race was determined to use it. He all but threw Benton and the kids into the chopper.

"Come on!" he yelled. But the Arab was already running in their direction. Race climbed in, getting out of the way, and pushed the others back into the seats that lined the sides. There was another spray of gunfire and then a skinny blond head and shoulders dove through the door. Before his feet were even on-board, the helicopter began its ascent.

"Strap in!" he shouted over the noise, pulling himself up and closing the door behind him. Then he turned not to join them but to take the co-pilot's seat.

With the helicopter bouncing around from its rapid takeoff, what could they do but obey once again?

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Zero Four in," Quatre said breathlessly as he pulled on the headset. "Mission accomplished. We are all safe and on our way."

"Glad to hear it," Duo said cheerfully. "I'm inbound now, so I'll be at Rock Island in a few hours."

"Zero Three," Quatre turned to Trowa, piloting the chopper as though born to it, "which airfield are we heading to?"

"Your flight plan has been changed," came Wufei's voice. "The helicopter Zero Three acquired came from a facility _someone_ decided isn't secure enough. So you're going to be routed elsewhere."

"It isn't secure enough," Heero said shortly. "I'll meet you when you land." Oh, that made sense to Quatre – Heero had been on Earth, after all, and given the choice he wouldn't have them out of his sight for longer than strictly necessary. So of course he would redirect them to his own location.

"You're such a worry-wort!" Duo teased.

"Shut up, _baka_."

"Yes, well," Wufei would be rolling his eyes now, even though Quatre couldn't see it, "like I said, this one's my case now, so I'm also on my way. I should be at Rock Island about the same time as Zero Two."

"All right," Quatre put in. "Then we'll leave the channel open but I don't think we'll need it until we meet at the rendezvous. Thanks, everyone, for the help."

"See you soon!" Duo's cheerfulness was a little over the top, even for him; Quatre wondered if his friend was also particularly worried this time.

"Hn" was the only response from Heero, and the only one anyone expected.

"Acknowledged. Alert me if anything changes," Wufei signed off.

Quatre muted the channel before looking over to Trowa again. Trowa's face was entirely neutral. But when he noticed Quatre's investigation, he stretched his right hand over and touched Quatre's arm.

The contact between them blew open the basic shields Quatre had put in place to keep himself focused and not caught up in the bond they shared. With those gone, Trowa's emotions surged into him and, of course, his were shared back in return. There was Trowa's fear and worry, but not as much as one might expect; after all, Trowa knew Quatre, knew he was more than competent, knew he could handle this much. But he also loved Quatre completely, so nothing was ever without at least some trepidation.

Before he could analyze further, Wufei came back on the open channel.

"I'm sorry," and it wasn't his businesslike tone but rather his sincere voice that caught Quatre's attention, "but I thought you'd want to know. The people who hijacked the hotel, they are demanding that Dr Quest surrender to them or they will start killing hostages. They are also demanding that Quatre Winner hand himself over as well. Preventers forces are almost on the scene and they'll handle things."

Quatre closed his eyes. He'd been right – the terrorists had wanted himself and Dr Quest, and so extricating them both along with the Quest family had been the best move to preserve a strategic advantage. It was a good thing he hadn't mentioned anything like that to the Quests during the extraction or they, from their reputation, might have argued with him to take some kind of action. But now, to know that innocent people might be hurt because he didn't surrender...

Trowa's emotions burst back into him, this time clear and well-defined. So well-defined in fact that Quatre could read Trowa's very thoughts in them, not as words, but as the impressions of his intent: _Don't be sad. You did the right thing. It's not your fault. You did the best you could do and you shouldn't regret that. I'm so glad you're safe._

Quatre sighed, but nodded. He knew his own emotions translating to Trowa were conflicted and upset, but ringing within them was the knowledge that everything Trowa wanted him to know he knew. Just because it was true he'd done the right thing and he'd done it without taking any lives, with this outcome, though, didn't make him feel much better.


	4. Choosing Sides

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Standard disclaimer applies – still don't own the Gundam crew or the Quests. They're just getting to know one another in my brain. That's all. Really.
> 
> Enjoy!

The helicopter flew for well more than an hour, during which the Quests could do little but wait – without headsets of their own, conversation was impossible. When they at last felt themselves descending, however, all five traded guarded looks. They knew they'd been rescued, but even that wasn't enough to overcome their built-by-experience concern about the motives of their rescuer.

As the rotors began winding down and the bumping stopped, Quatre Winner unstrapped himself and returned to the main portion of the helicopter, where he opened the door for them. He smiled once, a little uncertainly, and ducked out ahead of them.

"Well, we may as well see where we are," Race said, unbelting his own harness.

"Looks like a military installation," Jessie said, already out of her seat and to the door.

"And those are Preventers vehicles," Jonny added, cradling Bandit. "And I see a couple of men in the uniforms, too."

"Well, then, we might as well get out of here," Benton said, leading the way with a smile, "since either this is the most elaborate trap I've ever seen or our friends here really are with the Preventers."

A bit sheepishly, Jonny and Jessie climbed down from the chopper, just in time to get a hand from the helicopter pilot. He was unexpectedly their age, with a shock of brown hair that hid most of his face. He wore no uniform at all, just regular street clothes. He nodded at them once, then followed in the wake of Quatre Winner, who was moving across the tarmac to meet someone else standing not far off.

As the Quest team approached, they found themselves subjected to an incredibly intense stare from very blue eyes. Also not much older than the other two, this young man, with his unruly dark-brown hair, was watching them as though they might pose a risk to all he held dear. Every line of his body spoke of aggression and defensiveness.

"Oh, stop it," Quatre said, shaking his head and smiling in greeting. "Your glare of death is hardly fair to inflict on anybody, let alone right after a hotel-jacking. They've been unnerved enough."

"You're still too trusting," he replied, not softening a bit and not looking away from the Quests.

"And you're not being fair."

"Master Quatre?" came a new voice. Approaching them was a man dressed in Arabian clothing, his arm raised in greeting. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, Auda. Thank you. I assume you're here to take us to Rock Island?" Quatre closed the distance between them. The man made a small bow, not small out of disrespect, but apparently familiarity, as he finished it by clapping the blond on the shoulder.

"You assume correctly. Rashid is already there and is recalling most of the others."

"That's really unnecessary," Quatre turned and looked back towards the helicopter pilot and the blue-eyed stranger. "Who gave that order?"

"I did call Rashid," the pilot spoke for the first time, "but what he chose to do was up to him."

"Also," put in the blue-eyed young man, "when you see what I have uncovered, you may agree with the decision."

"And you're not going to tell me here?"

"Of course not. Still too trusting, Quatre," and there was a very tiny wry smile that turned his face from granite to something almost human. It was more than a little eerie on the young face.

"All right, all right! Even I know when the retreat is the best option. We'll head to Rock Island and sort it all out there." He turned to the Quests. "I'm sorry about this. But that hotel hijacking appears to be more than just a random attack by terrorists, and until we sort it out, I'm afraid we'll have to place you in protective custody. Now, you can go with the Preventers agents all waiting and ready to look after you," and he gestured to a nearby group of uniformed men, "or you can stay with me and my friends while we get to the bottom of things."

Benton felt himself smiling. It was a neat game they were playing, really. But he could see the options as they were intended to be presented: go with the Preventers and wind up locked down in a house for a week with no news, or stay with this remarkable young man and take part in some more adventures. If Quatre had wanted them with the Preventers, he never would have made the choice to stay so enticing to an adventure-driven family.

A glance to his side told him that everyone else was somewhat loathe to throw their lots in with the agents in uniforms. And there was an unusual light of curiosity in the eyes of the trio, different for each. Jonny was probably desperate to know why the terrorists had targeted them and make them sorry for it. Hadji seemed intrigued by Quatre himself. And Jessie...she had a gleam in her smile that he couldn't read, but tended to proceed one of her wild theories.

"Seems like a pretty easy call, Benton," Race shrugged. The bodyguard in him would have liked to lock down the whole family someplace safe, but that instinct had died years ago. Where danger and the unknown lurked, the Quests usually ran.

"So it is," he agreed. "Mr Winner, with your permission, we'll throw our lot in with you. But with that deal, I hope, comes some answers."

An electrically intense look passed between Quatre and the pilot and the new stranger. It was so fast no one could read it, but whatever it communicated put all three on their guard. The pilot raised one shoulder in what could have been a shrug. Quatre stared tightly at the other one.

"I did tell him I'd at least explain," the blond said at last. The unknown youth turned fully towards where Dr Benton stood with his family.

"If you prove false or a danger to any of us," blazing blue eyes bore into the Quest team, "there is nowhere you can hide."

"Was that a threat?" Jonny demanded, feeling a chill run up his spine at the expression turned on him.

"Yes."

"Now, wait a minute...!"

"Enough!" Quatre's voice snapped like a branch breaking. "The situation is that Dr Quest and his family are in danger. The forces intending them harm, from what you're not saying," he looked across at the intense man, "are not your run-of-the-mill group. We have Preventers authorization to deal with this situation and I intend to use it. The Quests are going to be a valuable part of this mission. So," and he simultaneously managed to pin everybody, even the nonchalant pilot, with a bright blue glare of his own, "we are going to have to work together."

"You," he looked at his friend, "are going to have to trust them. And if nothing else, trust me when I trust them. You know I'm not basing it on nothing. You _know_ that."

It earned him a very small nod of concession.

"And you," he turned back to the Quests, "are going to have to take things on a little bit more faith. We'll explain what we can, what's safe to tell you, but there are secrets we must keep. I know you don't know me or us, but I hope you can give me the time to show you enough to earn your willingness to believe."

"So where are we going?" Race said after a moment of quiet.

"Rock Island." After a heartbeat or two, the blue-eyed stranger straightened his shoulders and elaborated, "It's a retreat Quatre has in this part of the world that's little known to outsiders. It's also easy to fortify and well-equipped for almost anything."

"Do you really think we're going to need a fortress?" Jessie asked.

The stranger shrugged at them, which seemed to be all the answer they'd get.

"This is Auda," Quatre said, gesturing the man forward. "He's a friend, and he and his men work with us from time to time. He's going to escort us to Rock Island. When the rest of us arrive, that's when we'll talk. I give you my word," and he put a hand over his heart and bowed slightly, "we intend that no harm come to you while in our care. And I _will_ give you at least some answers. Is that enough for now?"

The Quest team looked at one another. Then, unexpectedly, Hadji stepped forward.

"I believe we are always where we are meant to be. We are here now, mixed up together. I would like to remain and find out why."

 

-==OOO==-

The trip to Rock Island was uneventful. They went by land because it made them much harder to track and less vulnerable than being in the air. (Quatre had been shot down in the desert before and wasn't looking to repeat the experience.) So they'd broken into two groups and divided into jeeps along with two more of Maganac Corp serving as guards, the Quest family in one and the ex-Gundam pilots in the other. It was a long trek, but not too uncomfortable, all things considered.

Rock Island, for its name, was not, in fact, and island. It had been named that way because of two features: an inner hydroponics garden with an elaborate center formation, and because it was located close to where Sandrock had been based for much of the early part of the Eve wars. On Earth, Quatre had several retreats, all secluded, all hidden, and all named with a code that was known only to the Gundams and the Maganacs. "Wing Mountain" was actually located on an island to the south of Japan. "Shenlong Cove" was deep within an Asian mountain. "Scythe Manor" was hidden far beneath a city along the Atlantic coast of North America. "Arms Valley" was situated in an outcropping of rock in the Baltic Sea. There were others, too, including one in the Sanc Kingdom, but these five were the most obscure.

In all five cases, the bases were not merely hidden and their locations largely unknown, but they also had multiple entry points that were equally difficult to find. In the case of Rock Island, a very long underground tunnel led from a concealed spot near the city for close to 60 miles before coming out in the subterranean complex. This saved everyone from a long time of riding in the desert over much less favorable terrain, which was likely a relief to everyone not native to or very familiar with the conditions of the arid land.

Upon arrival, the Quests spilled out of their jeep obviously more than a little taken aback at the sight of what amounted to practically a town as well as a fort deep under the desert. Men streamed from the buildings as they approached.

"Master Quatre!" came the warm voice of Rashid. Quatre stepped forward and bowed slightly. Rashid bowed more fully to his boy, smiling. "It is good to see you well, Master Quatre. We are glad to have you here safe. The Maganacs are at your disposal as always."

"Thank you, Rashid. Please meet my new friends. This is Dr Quest and his family."

"Guests of Master Quatre, we are honored. I speak for all the Maganacs when I welcome you." Rashid bowed to them as well. Then he turned back to Quatre. "I received a communication; I will have a few men meet the others as soon as they arrive. It is good to see you again, Heero. And as always, Master Trowa."

"Now that we're among friends and someplace we can all agree is safe enough," Quatre looked back to the Quests, "I suppose I should make proper introductions for us. My name is probably known to you all, but nonetheless – I am Quatre Raberba Winner. Please do call me Quatre." The long-haired pilot stepped forward at a nod from Quatre. "This is Trowa Barton, who engineered our extraction." The other man did not step forward but he did look up. "And this is Heero Yuy, who assisted me in tracking the movements of the terrorists inside the hotel. Both are...safe." As he said so, Quatre's eyes grew soft, and the other two made the tiniest of smiles at him.

"Thank you both for your help in securing our release from the hotel," Benton said sincerely. "I am Dr Benton Quest, as you already know. This is my son Jonny and my adopted son Hadji." He put an arm around the shoulders of each. "And this is Race Bannon and his daughter Jessie, also a part of our family. And Bandit, of course." Here he laughed because Bandit, tired of being carried, had wriggled out of Jonny's grip and was investigating Rashid's shoes.

"Now, don't let me hear any of you calling me Mr Bannon," Race smiled. "I only get that from people who haven't saved my life."

"So, what is this place? How does a wealthy corporate head of a company wind up acting like a paramilitary specialist? And what did those terrorists want?" Jonny's questions spilled out of him.

"Why don't we all go inside?" Quatre smoothly gestured to the door of the largest building. "There should be rooms made up for all of you to change or get the desert out of your eyes, and we can resume this when we all feel a little more like ourselves."

And so it was that, as no one wanted to refuse his hospitality, Quatre bought a reprieve for questions until after Duo and Wufei had made Earth-landing.

 

-==OOO==-

 

Jonny looked up from the sitting room of the suite that had been set aside for the Quests' use, four bedrooms and two bathrooms attached to this nice-sized parlor, as Hadji emerged from the bathroom. His turban was at last clean and white again, and he'd obviously opted for the clothing provided; Jonny, due to what anyone else might have called his stubborn streak and he maintained was just common sense, had gone back into his dusty clothes after a shower, avoiding even the more modern jeans and shirts found in the closets.

"So, what do you think?" he asked.

"It seems that Quatre Winner is a most generous host," Hadji said, settling into a chair beside him.

"Not what I'm asking, Hadj."

"I know. But what else can I tell you? We are operating with less than half of the facts. It would be foolhardy to assume anything."

"Oh, I think we can make a few assumptions," Jessie said, entering from the other side. She, like Hadji, had changed. But where Hadji had taken the local clothing provided, as it was similar to his own preferred dress, Jessie had opted for simple jeans and a t-shirt.

"Like what?" Jonny leaned forward as she perched on the arm of his couch.

"Well. We know that Quatre worked with several other individuals to get us out of the hotel. We know that he's well-enough connected that the Preventers let him take charge of us when, by rights, we should have had no choice but to go with them. And we know that Quatre has more than just wealth going for him, but a fair amount of combat experience as well."

"And what does that add up to?" Hadji asked.

"I'm not sure yet. I have the beginnings of an idea, but I want to learn more before I say anything."

"See? Not assuming before the facts," Hadji smirked at Jonny, who blew out his breath in exasperation.

"I just don't get it! How does it all fit together?"

"Well, maybe we're about to find out," Race said, emerging from his room and tapping on the door to the one given to Dr Quest. "It should be about time to eat, anyway."

"Always thinking with your stomach, Race," Benton teased, opening the door.

"Hey, what do I need with brains with you and Jessie and Hadji around?" he replied.

"Hey!" Jonny scrunched up his face, earning laughter all around.

At that moment, a knock came on the door and a man dressed similarly to Auda offered to take them to join Master Quatre for a meal. Their guide led them through many corridors before he bowed them into a dining room, where Quatre rose to his feet from the head of the table and greeted them politely. In addition to Heero Yuy and Trowa Barton, two other individuals were present, also around the age of the other three. Quatre quickly introduced them as Chang Wufei, a Preventers agent on special assignment, and Duo Maxwell. But when he began to attempt to offer details about Duo, the boy himself interrupted.

"So I'm Duo and Cat's probably done enough of this formal stuff for one day. I run and hide but I never tell a lie. I'm Cat's best friend and I keep Hee-chan and Trowa in line and even Wuffers over there likes me well enough."

"That's Wufei, not Wuffers or any other mangling of my proper name, and even being in Winner's care will not save you from me if you forget it, Maxwell," the Chinese man said roughly.

Jonny felt his face split into a grin. Here, finally, was someone after his own heart.

"Nice to meet you, Duo," he offered a hand to the young man with the tremendously long braid. "I'm Jonny and that's Hadji and Jessie and my dad and Race."

"Yup, got the whole briefing from Cat on the way in. So we gonna eat and talk or what?"

"That's exactly what we're going to do, if you can stop being such a child," Wufei said, stepping forward. "I'm here with full authorization from the Preventers organization to investigate the events at the hotel this morning and try to get to the bottom of who wanted Dr Quest and Winner and why."

"Quatre?" Race asked. "You didn't mention you were a target."

"Yes, he did," Heero said shortly. "He told Dr Quest so right after the initial explosion."

All eyes turned to the blond Arab who shrugged and gestured to the table. "All right. Yes, the terrorists were after Dr Quest as well as myself. But they didn't get either of us. So why don't we all sit down? Then Wufei can catch us up on the situation, Heero can tell us what he's learned, and I can start answering some questions."

The table was spread with an assortment of small sandwiches, fruit, and a number of dishes those unfamiliar with the cuisine of Persia might not have been able to identify. Which meant that Dr Quest, Race, and Hadji could cope perfectly well and Jessie and Jonny kept to sandwiches and fruit and baklava. As they settled around the table, Wufei stood and used a remote to bring down a three-dimensional screen hovering above the middle of the table that began showing images as he spoke.

"Here are the facts as we understand them thus far. At 9:18 local time, an explosion was set off in the lobby of the hotel holding the symposium, eliminating much of the on-site security. A group of presumed terrorists, numbering several dozen, stormed the hotel, taking hostages as they went. By 9:45 they had announced that their targets were Dr Benton Quest and Quatre Raberba Winner, both of whom were scheduled to appear at the symposium. However, neither Dr Quest nor Mr Winner were in the hotel at the time, a fact confirmed by Winner to myself much earlier. When they were unable to locate their targets, the terrorists issued an ultimatum: Dr Quest and Winner were to surrender themselves or they would begin killing hostages.

"At this point, the Preventers sent in their second-best squad to lock down the building and eliminate the terrorists. Before 11:00 the building had been secured and the terrorists had been placed under arrest, those not killed in the conflict. Several hostages were wounded and three were killed as a result of the terrorists' actions. There were also several casualties of Preventers agents."

As Wufei reported the losses, Jonny saw his father flinch. Movement across the table drew his attention and he saw that Quatre was also looking very pained. Then, the one called Trowa reached out and gripped his shoulder tightly. That earned him a shaky nod and they both turned back to the briefing.

"That's the official story. At this time, the Preventers don't have much more information available. But, we were able to acquire a bit more on our own." At this, Wufei sat down and Heero spoke from his place.

"I hacked the hotel's security systems to help Quatre extricate the target's family, and in doing so came into contact with the terrorists' own computers communicating with their base of operations. I was able to patch into their network and gained a great deal more information about the enemy.

"Their goals were more specific than simply abducting Dr Quest and Quatre. While their use for Quatre was unstated, though we can assume it had to do with his company's wealth and resources, they had very clear objectives regarding Dr Quest. It was obvious that they were not only after the doctor, but also his current research, the very material he had been invited to present. Upon learning this, I wondered why they would bother to hijack the hotel when it was about to become public knowledge, so I dug deeper and learned that the symposium, as it were, never existed. It was a fabrication, a trap set specifically to lure Dr Quest with his research to a fixed site where they could attain both. They only added Quatre to their list of objectives when he provided the opportunity himself," he glared across the table at the blond.

"So maybe," Duo said before anyone could even begin to react, "you should tell us what's so important about whatever you're cooking up, since it's obviously worth a lot to somebody."

"My research? This makes no sense!" Benton stood and began to pace. "I'm simply working on an application of virtual reality programming with a neural interface to allow the control of multiple inputs and outputs. It will be useful for a host of things, from the Mars terra-forming to laser surgery, but I can't imagine why it would be valuable to a terrorist cell."

"You did say the program has some weird risks," Jonny pointed out.

"Yes, but not useful militarily."

"Dr Quest. Can you please show us your research?" Wufei asked. It was phrased as a question, but it didn't sound like one.

"Of course. It's here on my laptop." Opening the computer he hadn't let out of his sight since Jessie had handed it to him, a few keystrokes later the program appeared in the rendered screen above the table. "It isn't finished yet, but this is the base code for the project."

There was a moment of silence and then a sudden crash as Heero stood so fast his chair tipped over.

"Heero, what is it?" Duo asked, the usual laughter gone from his voice. "Somebody who speaks fifteen computer languages want to translate this?"

"You're insane," Heero turned to Dr Quest accusingly. "How could you think reusing this is a good idea?"

"Heero, he doesn't know," came Quatre's quiet voice. If possible, he was paler than usual, and he gripped the arms of his chair tightly. "It was only ever known to a few people on Peacemillion and Libra. Dr Quest didn't reuse anything. He came up with it on his own."

"Quatre, you're not saying..." Wufei began, then trailed off, eyes widening.

"It's primitive, and incomplete," Heero said, "but that's the root of the ZERO System."


	5. Classified

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still don't own the GW team or the Quests. This is not expected to change any time soon.
> 
> Enjoy!

"So, what's this ZERO System?" Race asked, brows furrowing.

As one, the ex-Gundam pilots turned to Quatre, and if the situation hadn't been so grave he would have smiled. In spite of the fact that this was technically Wufei's mission, and that Heero was the best of them, the Eve wars had driven home to them that it was Quatre who led. Not because he demanded it, but because his was the voice the other four had decided to trust to know how to win. And once that trust had been given, Quatre had earned it over again tenfold. In the time since the last fighting ended, when the five found themselves on a Preventers mission together, even when it was Wufei who was in charge, it was still Quatre they trusted to show them the way.

Quatre, however, turned to Wufei first.

"What sort of clearance do the Quests have?" he asked.

"Not enough for everything," he replied. "But Lady Une will give them access to whatever we deem necessary."

"Then I'll tell you as much as I think you can know now, and we'll decide later if it's enough." Quatre took a deep breath in and out, willing himself to remain composed. Trowa slipped a hand to his knee under the table, and Heero sat down stonily.

"How many secrets do you guys have, anyway?" Jessie wanted to know.

"More than zero," Duo winked at her. That earned him another Heero death-glare, but it did cause Quatre to huff in amusement and Wufei to roll his eyes, which had been the point.

"The ZERO System was the interface used by White Fang to control their army of mobile dolls during the last stages of the Eve wars. With a single user to drive it, the program allowed for the simultaneous strategic and tactical deployment of dozens of pilot-less mobile suits in real combat. It used a direct mental interface, allowing for quicker reaction-times, but also caused users to become overwhelmed by the hundreds or thousands of possibilities presented by the program. The estimated values and variables presented to the users resulted in madness and hallucinations, but for users who managed to take in the input and maintain their focus, it provided a clear and unstoppable path to total victory."

"I can see where the theoretical similarities between my program and this ZERO System come into play, but I assure you, I created this system for peace, not war. I merely wanted to create a virtual reality program that would allow a user to command remote units to ensure safer working conditions in space or around dangerous materials. I had no idea..." Dr Quest trailed off.

"I believe ya, Doc," Duo piped up. "But apparently somebody else saw your little vid game as the perfect way to recreate ZERO."

"The ZERO System was lost after the wars," Wufei said thoughtfully. "There were very few people who ever knew of its existence, and even fewer who could comprehend how it worked. One of those limited number must also have gotten access to your files and made the connection."

"Who knew you were working on this?" Heero's question cut through the room.

"No one. Even my family didn't know the details of the project." Dr Quest's eyes widened, however, and he quickly added, "But we did have a security breach about four months ago. Nothing was taken and none of our systems were compromised, so I assumed the culprit hadn't gotten through the firewall."

"You'd think people would have better things to do than to hack our stuff," Jonny grumbled.

"I wish they did," Hadji said ruefully.

"So you're assuming that someone got into our files and, what, just found Dr Quest's newest research?" Jessie raised an eyebrow. "Isn't that a little convenient?"

"There are no coincidences," Trowa said mildly.

"So what can somebody possibly want with Benton's project?" Race asked. "Obviously it was a problem a couple of years ago but now that things are calm..."

"Race, you're missing the point," Dr Quest sighed. "The program is unfinished, but in a form like what Quatre described it could be used to do any number of things. Hack and take command of an Earth-bound shuttle and redirect it somewhere dangerous. Cause all mobile suits used for reconstruction to simultaneously explode. Shut down multiple banks or governments or other secured systems. In its current state, it can allow a single user to maintain control over whatever they had access to or had the capacity to infiltrate."

"Okay, now that's a problem," Jonny looked at his father. "Why'd you go and make that thing again?"

"It seemed like a good idea at the time!" Benton threw up his hands. "How was I to know that someone would steal it and threaten the safety of every automated system ever invented?"

Suddenly Quatre's head snapped up from where he'd been staring at the table thinking. The motion caught everyone's attention.

"Dr Quest, how much of your data is here with you? Do you have the only copy?"

"No. Of course not. I have the basics and the main system folders, but most of my work is still at the compound."

"Heero, Wufei," Quatre said, eyes sharpening. "Check it. Quickly."

"On it," Heero said. He drew a laptop of his own from beneath the table and began typing furiously. Wufei simply nodded and pulled out a small device, scrolling through the channels to connect to the Preventers.

"Whatcha thinkin', Cat?" Duo asked.

"Someone went to an enormous amount of trouble to get their hands on Dr Quest and his research, setting up a fake symposium, the explosion, the number of terrorists on site. That's a big operation and well-coordinated." Quatre stood and moved to where he could look over Heero's shoulder.

"So?" Jonny asked.

"So," Jessie rolled her eyes, "that probably wasn't their only plan."

"The compound!" he realized.

"It's too late, kid," Race said sadly, looking at his own phone. "I'm not getting the ping from the security signal that should be confirming all is well. They baited us good. At least they could have had the decency to visit us when we were home."

"Okay. Now I really want to know who's behind this," Duo frowned, picking up a grape and idly tossing it in the air. "'Cause if they've got a ZERO System, or most of one, we're gonna have big problems and soon."

"That's why I've asked Heero and Wufei to see what they can learn about the intruders at the Quest compound," Quatre nodded. "The sooner we identify these people, the sooner we can stop them."

"Wait, that's what that was? How'd you know the compound would be compromised?" Jonny wanted to know.

"Because it's what I would do if I were running their operation."

Before the chill of that statement from the young CEO could sink in, Duo spoke up again.

"Hee-chan, you find anything yet?"

Heero gave a glare to Duo that should have ended his life in an instant and failed to respond. Wufei looked up from his own device and shook his head.

"The Preventers satellites weren't in position to get a good view from space," he said. "Well planned indeed."

"Heero?" Trowa asked.

"There's nothing I can get to, either. We'll have to go there ourselves to see what we can learn from the Quests' own security footage." He closed the laptop with a barely visible tension of frustration.

"Or you could let Winner do it," Wufei smirked.

"No. Not until we have no other choice," and it wasn't Quatre the young man but rather the youngest CEO in history who was standing there. "That equipment is not to be compromised without a good reason. As Heero says, we'll learn more tomorrow. I'll have the Maganacs ready transportation for us."

The Quest family exchanged looks but shrugged. WEI being what it was, they sort of expected it to have super secret ultra powerful satellites at its command. They would have had one of their own if Dr Quest had bowed to Jonny's repeated requests for one when he desperately wanted to watch certain sporting events on the other side of Earth a year or two prior.

"You have been attacked and your home was broken into. You must realize the seriousness of all this," Wufei said, turning his attention fully to them. "I do not know who is behind it all, but I give you my word of honor that we shall find them and bring them to justice."

"One way or another," Duo muttered to himself.

"In the meantime, you are my guests," Quatre ignored his braided friend. "The Maganacs will help you with anything you need. I have rather a lot to do before tomorrow, so I'm afraid I will have to leave you for now. You may wander as you wish – if you care to experience the desert, have someone show you the proper elevator to the surface. For anything else, if the door opens at your approach you are welcome to explore."

"And the doors that don't open are un-hackable," Trowa added. "Save yourselves the trouble and don't try."

"Will we see you again before tomorrow?" Dr Quest asked. But it was Heero who answered.

"Only if we want you to find us."

"I'm sorry. We really must get to work," Quatre apologized, a pleading smile on his face. He stood and showed the Quests to the door and it was only when they were in the hallway that they realized how neatly they'd been dismissed.

"I'll say this for the kid – he's good," Race chuckled. "Managed us like a pro."

"It's just as well," Benton nodded. "If our compound has been broken into, I'm going to have my hands full for a while. And I should probably let some of our friends know that I'm okay – I'm sure that attack at the hotel has made all the major media by now."

"So what should we do?" Jonny wanted to know.

"Well, I, for one, intend to explore as Quatre said we could," Jessie tossed her head. "There's something here that doesn't add up and I'd like to find out what."

"I'm with you, Ponchita. Besides, I'd like to try my hand at these 'un-hackable' doors," Race grinned slyly.

"I'm in, too," Jonny added. "Hadj? You wanna come?"

"No thank you," he replied. "I believe I will go with Dr Quest and spend some time meditating upon all that has happened today. But do enjoy yourselves as you push the boundaries of politeness with our very kind host." There was chiding there, but it was good-natured.

While Benton and Hadji navigated back to their rooms, Race, Jonny, and Jessie picked a corridor at random and began to explore. It wasn't as if they had a map exactly, so they simply started out going in one direction and waited to see where it would lead.

Over the course of the next several hours, they learned all kinds of things about the place called Rock Island. First, that it was staffed primarily by people of Arabian descent, many of whom deferred to them kindly and offered to help them find whatever they might need. When they mentioned that Quatre had given them permission to wander, many very complimentary things were said about "Master Quatre," though how a young blond from L4 had become so dear to these people was a question everyone evaded and told them they should ask Rashid instead.

Rashid, however, proved to be highly elusive. On the other hand, they did find Auda, who showed them the kitchens, the swimming pool, and the hydroponics gardens with a large rock sculpture in the center, giving the complex its name. Auda seemed to be a good sort of person, engaging and passionate, and nearly always with a smirk or a laugh. He was also rather popular, so when Race at last got the itch to try some opening rather than just looking at closed doors, it meant they had to carefully extricate themselves from Auda and his many friends.

"Found one!" Jonny said, popping his head back around a corner of one of the lower-level hallways. The three had spread out to locate a door that needed to be opened by craftiness rather than the usual way.

"Looks important, dad," Jessie noted, spotting the thick metal of the doorframe and the sizeable lock.

"Well, let's find out what Mr Winner and his friends keep so well guarded," Race winked back. From his belt-buckle he pulled a set of lockpicks, but a few moments was all it took to determine that he would have to crack the keypad rather than the manual locking mechanism.

"Round one to the natives," he grumbled.

"He said 'un-hackable,' Race," Jonny pointed out. "Want me to give it a go?"

"Yeah, 'cause of the three of us _you're_ the best hacker," Jessie rolled her eyes.

"Wanna bet?"

"Sure!"

"Okay, you two. Tell you what. You each get five minutes. If neither of you gets the door open, I get a shot. I'll flip a coin to see who goes first," Race offered. "Deal?"

"Deal," Jonny offered a hand and Jessie shook it.

The coin toss came up for Jonny so he set to work, using the gadgets in his watch to give him an edge. Race started the timer and sat back to keep an eye out.

"Come on, Jonny," Jessie called snarkily at the two-minute mark. "How can you not be finished already? Or is it too much for you?"

"It's...a little complicated, Ace," he replied testily. "But I'm not done yet!"

Jonny pulled the front plate off of the keypad and studied the wires. A little fiddling later and he got the keypad to respond. The small view-screen above it finally came to life, having ignored every other try to get it to display anything at all. However, it wasn't as helpful as he would have wanted.

"Oh, that's not fair!" he groaned. "I can't read Arabic! How am I supposed to hack in another language?"

"We'll never know," Race put in, "because that's five minutes, so it's Jess's turn."

"Thanks for getting me ahead, though," she smirked at him.

"Yeah, let's see how you do."

Jessie bit her lip and began to focus on the problem at hand. She didn't know Arabic either, but a few false entries gave her enough to know that the view-screen probably said something along the lines of "Welcome and please enter password." Since Jonny had exposed the wiring in the lock, she opted for the more direct route of simply attempting to short out the lock entirely.

"Let's try this!" she yanked on what should be the correct wire. It popped free and for a moment the view-screen went dark.

"Nice work!" Race congratulated her.

"Not yet!" Jonny said gleefully. He pointed and, indeed, the view-screen had come back online, only now it was showing its phrase in Mandarin Chinese.

"Hey, that's an improvement," Jessie grinned. Unlike Jonny, who focused on European languages, she actually had a basic knowledge of Mandarin. The screen was asking for her personal ID prior to a password, so she attempted a few different combinations of numbers, but nothing worked. Then, after a few random tries, the message changed.

"What's that mean?" Jonny asked, truly interested.

"It says 'mission,' I think. That must be the password prompt." Jessie considered for a moment. "But I don't know what to enter."

"Well, then you both lose because it's my turn," Race held up his watch.

"Good work, though," Jonny flicked her a genuine smile. "Got farther than I did."

"Thanks."

Race settled in to battle the lock, but it seemed that unplugging another wire only reset the language, and as a few of the remaining ones looked like they connected it to a live security system, he opted not to risk setting off a bunch of alarms. The lock was obviously connected to a central computer of some kind, and after a while Race realized that he was trying to beat more than one keypad, but rather a whole matrix of protection. Around this point, he was a step away from trying something more drastic when footsteps echoed in the corridor.

"Get back," he whispered, ducking into a corner and waving Jonny and Jessie behind a convenient table.

"Race?"

"Benton?"

Dr Quest appeared around the corner, a slightly bemused look on his face.

"Dad!" Jonny came out of his hiding spot. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I was just starting to think about finding someone for dinner when I received this." He smiled as he handed over a note that had been slipped under the door. Jonny took it and read it aloud.

> " _Dr Quest,_
> 
> _Master Quatre sends his regrets, but he would like to confirm that he cannot join you for dinner. He invites you to ask for anything you might like either by sending a message through the phone in your rooms or simply by speaking to anyone you meet in the complex. Transportation to your home has been arranged for 0700 tomorrow morning. Please make yourself comfortable and, again, if you have need of anything at all, please do not hesitate to ask. You are Master Quatre's guest and, as such, we are happy to serve you._
> 
> _Rashid_
> 
> _P.S. A few of your party appear to be breaking into a room on the 3rd level from the bottom in the red wing of this building. They will not succeed, but if you wish to have them join you for your supper you may need to fetch them. Do not be concerned – their attempts have proved rather diverting for our security team."_

"They knew we were here the whole time!" Jessie sighed disgustedly. "They were just playing with us! No wonder we couldn't crack it. It wasn't an automated system at all. Somebody was changing it in response to what we did."

"Okay, then. Round two to the kid," Race admitted, sheepishly. "That's some very good tech and some very, very good people he's got. I have to wonder what makes them like him so much. You can't buy the kind of loyalty we've seen, even as rich as he is."

"Regardless," Benton took the note back and folded it, "Bandit is starting to get annoying in the rooms, and I think he'd like to be outside. And it is dinner time. So why don't we leave the poor door alone for now and get something to eat?"

"Sure dad," Jonny realized how much his stomach was rumbling after a moment. "And then I'll see about getting Bandit some time to run around somewhere."

"I'd like to see the desert, even just for a bit," Jessie added.

"Dinner first, kiddo," Race slung an arm around her shoulders and began the walk back to their rooms in this strangest of accommodations.


	6. Brotherhood

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize to anybody who is actually an expert in martial arts. I am not. I understand energy and motion, but I've never mastered any forms. So...just go with it, huh? I think (I hope) what I'm trying to get at in this chapter can be communicated without a black belt to my name, but let me know how it comes across to you.
> 
> Also, there's a lot here that is sort of a spiritual reference to a Wallace Stevens poem called "A Rabbit as King of the Ghosts." Go check it out – the imagery works very well for our Gundam boys, I think. The line I could not keep out of my head when writing, though, was this:
> 
> To be, in the grass, in the peacefullest time,  
> Without that monument of cat,  
> The cat forgotten on the moon;  
> And to feel that the light is a rabbit-light  
> In which everything is meant for you  
> And nothing need be explained;  
> Then there is nothing to think of...
> 
> Time for stuff to start getting a little more real, as it were.
> 
> Enjoy!

"Where's Quatre?" Duo asked the first Maganac he saw. "And everybody else, too?" He would have been peeved about having been left out of whatever they were doing, except they probably had actually told him – he just hadn't listened. After the Quests had left the room, there'd been a lot of talk about political alliances and business interests and possible suspects and he'd sort of tuned them out. It wasn't that he didn't care so much as he didn't care until they knew a little more. Duo's patience for speculation was a little thin. He'd snapped out of his wall-staring contest to realize that everyone must have left him there. A snack and a quick visit with his friends among the Maganacs and now he was ready to locate the other four once more.

"Outside," Abdul replied. "I was just going up there myself. Come on."

"What about the Quests?"

"Master Quatre said that if they are ready, they will find their own way," he shrugged. "I think that means he trusts them to know whether or not they belong. And for us not to worry too much."

"Sounds like Cat to me," Duo grinned.

Duo and Abdul walked in companionable silence through the house, reaching the elevator that led up to the surface. Outside, Rock Island looked like a very small settlement clustered around a tiny oasis; in reality, those were all the watchtowers and even concealed launch-pads for space-worthy vehicles as most of the complex was hidden underground. Many of the families of the Maganacs had relocated here after the Eve wars because their other homes had been compromised by the Gundams.

Stepping out of the elevator and walking through the small house, they emerged into the desert at sunset. Abdul branched off, calling to a few friends who were sitting in the shade of an awning nearby. But now that he knew where to look, Duo continued on alone.

Beyond the outskirts of the artificial town, down a sand dune and around some rocky ground, a beige tent had been pitched. It had no walls, only a roof to keep off the sun. There were several chairs and soft cushions scattered beneath it, and a few lanterns lit it warmly against the coming dusk. There were also small tables that disguised high-efficiency refrigeration units in which Duo knew he would find fruit and drinks and probably delicacies he couldn't name but adored.

Rashid sat on one of the cushions under the tent, leaning against one of the supports, his arms folded. Duo plopped down beside him.

"What is it tonight?" he asked.

"I'm not sure," Rashid said in his deep voice. "Something new, I believe."

A few yards away, Heero and Trowa were sprawled on the sand, breathing deeply. Duo knew that meant the two had just finished a round of all-out sparring. All the Gundam pilots could fight hand-to-hand, but they had vastly different ways of doing it. From Wufei, classically trained in multiple martial arts, to Duo, the dirty street-fighter, they all had their means of making the best use of their knowledge and natural advantages. Which meant, of course, that when together they battled each other to keep their own skills sharp.

Beyond them, Quatre and Wufei were not sparring, but rather moving together through a sedate kata. It was like music or poetry with the body, the two of them shifting side-by-side into and out of movements that, done slowly, looked like a dance. But done at speed, every gentle extension would have been deadly. Duo knew Quatre was no slouch at hand-to-hand combat, but he also knew that the Arabian much preferred this, the feeling of moving with his chi and letting his soul stretch – at least, that was how he'd explained it once. Quatre and Wufei had a strange bond of their own. They were not lovers like Quatre and Trowa and never had been. Nor did they share the whatever-it-was that bound Quatre and Heero. And Duo would smack Quatre if he ever called the Chinese pilot his best friend. But in moments of absolute stillness, like this, they understood each other better than anyone else.

As the kata drew to a close, Wufei performed a proper bow at the waist, and Quatre bowed with his hands over his heart. Then the blond turned to his friends and nodded meaningfully.

"About time," Heero said, and those who knew him best could hear the anticipation in his words.

Duo rose from his place and fell in beside Heero and Trowa as they approached. Without any signal, the five formed a circle, all facing inwards. This was a ritual they had begun around the same time they had all truly become more than allies or friends. In the aftermath of a particularly difficult Preventers mission, it had been Quatre who had started a simple kata to work off his own tension, and Wufei had joined him, and then Trowa and Duo and at last Heero, moving through a known martial arts form in unison. But they no longer stopped at that; instead, they had begun using this shared knowledge and awareness to express so much more.

As always, Quatre began.

Like with the kata before, Quatre bowed once, his hand over his heart. Wufei and Heero both bowed as was their custom, Trowa nodded once solemnly, and Duo bobbed his head, his braid flicking out behind him. Then Quatre began to move. It was a familiar kata, a form they all knew. Quatre started the movements, slow and calm, and they echoed him. But after a few, he began to change it. Instead of the block that should have come, he instead moved his right hand out, opening his palm, sweeping it forward.

The others copied the movement, feeling it in their bones, feeling together somehow what Quatre wanted them to understand by it. Like a crescendo, each motion they repeated drew them deeper and deeper into almost a trance wherein they moved to a rhythm they began to share, all the while weaving themselves through Quatre's heart written in the motions. After a few moments of this, Trowa stepped out of turn, and the others looked to him to copy his movements instead, the rhythm having shifted easily. There were no words. Trowa's gestures were not as refined as Quatre's, smaller and more subtle and less practiced, but there was no less truth in them. His hands and his arms spoke for him and he led them in silence through the sea of his own thoughts.

Then Heero moved and they shifted again, now copying him as he guided them. Heero's choices were always precise, certain, and every one of them seemingly more dangerous than either Quatre or Trowa before him. Heero's body was taut and focused and carried the same harsh measure of his eyes, the same absolute clarity and skill that had made him the perfect soldier. But those who spoke this language knew what he said with it. And more importantly, they understood that the appearance of anger or hate in Heero often meant something else entirely, and every echoed step told them its truth.

As Heero's movements slowed, Duo took the next turn, infusing more energy but no less meaning into the motions. Duo's expressions were raw as Trowa's had been, and then more so, and sometimes unfinished or incomplete, but they were his nonetheless, telling his own heart-story. Where Quatre had radiated teamwork, fellowship, trust, and peace; where Trowa had evoked worry and the anticipation of danger and that ever-present silence of his nature; where Heero had expressed tension and determination and protectiveness and, indeed, loyalty; here Duo conveyed faith, optimism, the ability to cope with change and chaos, and the certainty that they were together.

At last Duo's movements stilled and everyone turned to Wufei. Wufei picked up smoothly from Duo's last motion, carrying them for a short time into a traditional kata, which was his way – he always used one of the known forms before branching into his own expression. And when at last he broke with the pattern and began leading them through his choices, firm and steady and graceful, his own heart was revealed. Wufei repeated some of Trowa's worry, Heero's tension, with some of his own as well. Then he raised an eyebrow and copied Duo's optimism, turning it fluidly into Quatre's fellowship and trust. And then there was gratitude as well, a sense of not being alone.

Quatre was the only empath of the five, but when their bodies had been so attuned, when they had bent their very selves to each others' hearts, it was as if Quatre's gift was shared for a little while. No one knew how it worked – Quatre and Wufei hadn't discussed it in depth, and it wasn't the sort of question the others ever brought up. But for a few moments, it was not only Quatre who could sense the others. There, hovering in the center between them over the desert sands at sundown were all their hearts, their pains and sorrows, their joys and triumphs, their shames and their pride, interwoven and interdependent. It was how the other four knew Quatre experienced the world all the time. But here in this moment, they were together and they shared in it.

It should have been horrible.

It should have been a terrible intrusion into the most private parts of very private, prickly, defensive, scarred warriors. It should have driven them apart. But it never had, and the reason was simple – when all five were laid bare, they found that they were the same. They had the same bloody memories, the same bouts of doubt and confusion and despair, the same burdens. They had the same hopes and the same capacity for fellowship. The first time it had happened, though they never spoke of it, four of the five had found themselves with tears in their eyes to learn that they were truly, completely, utterly not only not alone, but _understood_. It was the single most important gift they had ever been given, and Quatre was grateful beyond the telling of it that he could give it somehow.

When things came perfectly into alignment, when not one could have told which emotions or fears belonged to whom, it was to Quatre they again turned. And the Arabian quietly moved through a few gestures they didn't need empathy to comprehend – friendship and hope and thankfulness and loyalty and, yes, love. Not one of them could deny they would be fools to call it anything but that. They had become better than brothers. What was left but the brightest of all connections?

As Quatre moved, he stepped forward in the circle. First approaching Trowa, he touched one hand to his lover's cheek. Then on to Heero, who reached out and gripped his hand tightly for a moment. Then to Duo, who leaned forward to rest his forehead on Quatre's shoulder. Then to Wufei, the least demonstrative of them, who put a hand on Quatre's head, not in a condescending pat, but an almost gentle acknowledgment. Quatre returned to his place in the circle and took a deep breath in.

When he breathed out, at last stilling himself completely, the connection went quiet and the five were five once more, rather than one heart and soul beating for life in five damaged minds.

There were a few moments of silence, where they did nothing but look at one another or avoid looking at one another, depending. But eventually the spell would have to be broken, and this time it was done by Duo.

"I'm starving," he smiled impishly, and they knew it was not that he was trivializing what they had experienced, but rather moving on from it, and they followed him back to the beige tent.

Rashid was waiting, and had already opened the tables and set out the fruit and drinks and desserts and the warm, bread fresh from the village. The once-pilots would never have allowed anyone else near for something so very sacred, but Rashid they permitted because of what he was to Quatre. In reality, Rashid was the closest thing any one of them had to a father left in life, which was perhaps a strange thing to think about a man who had sworn to follow and serve Quatre. But as Rashid never spoke to any of them or anyone else about what he witnessed between them, he was trusted and it was enough.

So they settled in and ate the food and there, with no prying eyes, alone in the desert with only the setting sun and the emerging stars for company, Rashid faded away and left them to be only themselves in a world that so often asked them to be everything else. In the warm afterglow of that impossible connection, they became themselves completely with one another.

Duo and Heero bickered and irritated each other until Wufei grabbed ahold of Duo's braid and tugged.

Trowa and Quatre were quietly in love and received only minimal teasing for their closeness.

Wufei and Trowa discussed, of all things, languages, both of whom had had cause to learn more than a few in their lives.

Duo and Quatre laughed and leaned with their arms around each others' shoulders as Heero fought with the fruit bowl to retrieve the very last strawberry without having it touch any cantaloupe.

Heero threw a section of baklava at Wufei after a disparaging remark about Quatre's hospitality.

Trowa sneaked Duo the last strawberry from Heero's plate so the braided thief could taunt him with it.

Quatre traced Chinese characters in the sand and played a bizarre game of hangman with the strokes with Wufei and Heero.

The sun set completely, but until the desert really got cold, this was the perfect golden time. They lit a few more lamps and made use of the blankets around the cushions and the ingenious heaters hidden amidst them to keep the tent comfortable. And they laughed. They laughed and tweaked one another and relaxed, well, as much as they were capable.

"Hey Cat?" Duo said at last, looking up from where he was trying to see how many wafers he could stack on Trowa's knee. "Did you want to play for us?"

It was a silly question. It was Duo's way of expressing that he wanted Quatre to play, while not actually being capable of asking for such a thing outright. It was how he preserved his pride and his attitude, and all of them saw through it, and he knew they did. But it didn't matter. It was a little mechanism that worked for him and they all had their own ways of coping, after all.

So Quatre smiled brightly and took up his violin, tucked nearby for just this reason. And while Duo continued piling wafers and Trowa stared at the stars and Heero and Wufei pretended not to listen, Quatre played.

Quatre played songs of the desert sands and the stars and the rare wonder of water. He played songs of love and loss and peace and uncertainty. He coursed through his own terrors and joys, the echoes of which lived in the other four around him. And at last he played a swelling, rising, crashing melody that sang as much as it screamed about the sun-bright loyalty and power of five souls in unity.

When he finished, he lowered the instrument and looked at no one because he could not look at them all at once. And they did not look at each other because they couldn't focus on one and leave the others out. But they felt it.

And a moment later, all five were on their feet at the sound of someone approaching.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"It's all right," Quatre whispered, stepping forward. Wufei had his sword out, and Heero had a gun, and Trowa and Duo each had a knife of some kind, but Quatre stepped out from the golden tent with his hands open.

"Didn't mean to scare you," came Jonny's voice. "It's just...we were looking around and Hadji heard music and..."

"Was that you playing?" Jessie pointed at where Quatre had stepped quickly around his precious violin's case. At his nod, she bit her lip. "We only heard part of it. It was...beautiful."

"We did not mean to disturb you," Hadji spoke softly. "I just, that is, _we_ wanted to find you. All of you."

Quatre looked back at the other four and there was a silent and rapid council. Four expressions shifted as they looked at one another and then Heero nodded.

"Come and join us," Quatre invited, and the three newcomers felt the cold of the night go back as they were welcomed into the circle in the light.

Even Quatre's magnanimous invitation couldn't, however, thaw the ex-pilots from their usual attitudes. While the blond set the three in comfortable places and played the part of perfect host, offering them the food and drink, producing a bit of jerky for Bandit who settled in at once, and asking them how they were doing, there was more than a little tension in the air. The Quests were outsiders, and that was the truth. And everyone could feel it.

"Dad and Race have been working to pull the feeds from the compound computers," Jonny reported, looking in the friendlier direction of Quatre and Duo and ducking the non-hostile but obvious stoicism of Heero and Wufei and Trowa. "So far they haven't gotten anything useful and the data transfer doesn't seem to be going smoothly."

"We'll be able to get more than enough when we arrive," Heero said casually.

"What makes you think you're better than the people who designed the system from the beginning?" Jessie asked with a little heat.

"Ooh! Don't say that!" Duo laughed, shaking his head until his braid was near enough to Trowa's face to require an intervention. "Don't insult Heero when it comes to hacking. You'll regret it."

"It's true," Wufei said, smirking a little. "Yuy is the best. To question him is unwise."

"Let's just say that there are a couple of people out there who used to have security systems and now they have viruses running their operations," Trowa added with a slightly evil grin.

"You're that good?" Jonny asked eagerly.

"Hn."

"Which is Heero for 'you better believe it or I'll show you personally,' I think," Quatre smiled.

"Who _are_ you guys?" Jessie asked, as though she'd been bursting with the question since they'd arrived.

"Oh, I'm just a street rat from L2. Trowa used to hang out in the circus. Quatre is the crazy billionaire. Wufei works for the Preventers." Duo leaned back with his hands folded behind his head. "We're just as normal as you three."

"Which isn't saying anything at all," Hadji pointed out. "But Jessie, it is obvious to me that they have their secrets and guard them well. I do not believe pressing them on it will get us anywhere."

"Come on! You're curious too!" Jonny frowned.

"Of course, my friend. But I know well when to try to catch a tiger and when to let it go."

"Wisdom at last," Wufei sank onto a cushion and set his sword aside. "It is possible you are not as foolish or as weak as you appeared after all."

"Weak?!" Jessie and Jonny almost jumped to their feet but for a warning in the air itself.

"Wu-bear, that's a little harsh, don't you think?" Duo asked mildly.

"It's Wufei, Maxwell, and if I remind you again you will regret it. And no." He looked down his nose at the trio and narrowed his eyes. "They're just children."

"If I might point out," Hadji said, cutting off what would have been a very angry retort from a red-faced Jonny, "we are no younger than yourselves."

"Wufei is right," Heero said, shifting in his seat to where he could face them head-on. "Age isn't what makes you children. It is the life you lead that defines you."

Quatre started to move to say something, but Trowa caught his sleeve and shook his head. He huffed but nodded and instead stretched a hand out to stroke Bandit, who seemed to be getting upset as his people became agitated. Bandit sighed under Quatre's petting and went back to the jerky happily, ignoring everything else.

"We're not kids, not any more than you are!" Jessie protested. "We've done dozens of scientific explorations, we've been in dangerous situations, we've had to fight for our lives! Who are you to judge us?"

"Well _you_ are a woman," Wufei said with disdain, "and that is reason enough."

"Okay, that one I'm gonna have to back the newbies on," Duo put in. "Being a girl is an issue for him," he said to her soothingly. "Don't listen to that part. We never do."

"I just don't understand you guys," Jonny said through grit teeth. "You act like we're nothing, even Race, and he's special ops, trained and everything. You," he pointed at Quatre "are at least nice to us, and you don't openly insult us," he glared at Wufei and Heero, "but even you had us following you like puppies in the hotel."

"Don't feel bad about that," Trowa spoke at last. "In the end, everybody follows Quatre."

"Where I come from, it is believed that we are all where we are meant to be. That we are here suggests both that we need you and that in some way you shall need us as well," Hadji said. "I know we cannot trust one another now," he held up a hand, "but surely loud displays do us no good service in proving our maturity?" and he looked to his adopted brother.

"Then what means would you accept?" Jessie demanded, noting the nodding heads around her at Hadji's measured words.

"Heero, don't," Quatre warned.

"It's the quickest way," Duo pointed out.

"Yuy is capable of honoring proper standards," Wufei added.

"Wait, what?" Jonny looked to the blond Arab who shook his head a little dejectedly.

"There's only one real way to prove you are worthy of what you are asking for," Trowa explained. Heero was already standing and taking a lantern from where it hung from a tent pole. "We respect wisdom," and he nodded at Hadji, "but we respect strength more."

"You want us to fight you?" Jessie's face registered her surprise.

"Not you," Wufei began to say. But Duo rolled his eyes and stood.

"Sure. Heero against Jonny and you against me. You do okay, we'll stop hassling you. Probably."

"This is barbaric," Hadji commented.

"I know," Quatre sighed a little ruefully. "But we're all what life has made us, and like Trowa said, we respect strength. Although there are other kinds of strength that we all agree are also of value," and the sudden sharpness of his bright eyes was not lost.

"Of course. And we shall leave that to you," Wufei said, completely deferentially for once.

"And what does _that_ mean?" Jonny asked.

"If I am not mistaken," Hadji looked swiftly at Quatre before continuing, "that my test shall be one rather different from your own."

"He's all right, Cat," Duo declared. "He gets it. Let's see if these two do."

And he picked up a lantern and moved out into the cold sands beside Heero.

"They're really serious?" Jonny exchanged a glance with Jessie.

"They won't hurt you," Trowa said softly. "Think of it as a friendly match."

"You do not have to do this, you know," Hadji said, rising as his friends did. "We do not need to earn their respect in this manner. Time will reveal enough to us all."

"Yeah," a familiar light had begun to burn in Jonny's eyes, "but this way might be fun. They're so sure they're superior. I'd like to find out if that's really true. Jess?"

"Oh, you know I'm in," she grinned. "I've got some weight on Duo and at least one move he won't be expecting. I don't have to win for it to be satisfying."

"I think it is possible that you will be grateful for that perspective," Hadji shook his head, smiling at his incorrigible family.

Jonny and Jessie followed Heero and Duo out from the tent a few yards until they had plenty of space. Trowa and Wufei both moved one to each match, Wufei calling out the rules.

"Three touches. Leave a mark and you are disqualified. And you," he glared at Duo, "if you make a sound I will give the win to the woman. I will not be treated to another display of your howling manners."

"For what it's worth," Jonny said to Heero as he settled into position and rolled his shoulders, "this works just fine for me. Haven't had anybody but Hadji and Jessie and sometimes Race to go up against in forever."

"I want Trowa calling mine," Duo piped up, "since Wu-Wu is being such a pain."

There was a short scuffle in which Trowa said something low to Wufei to prevent an entirely different conflict from erupting, which evidently succeeded since the Chinese agent stalked over to stand between Heero and Jonny with a very sour look. Trowa winked at Duo.

"But that silence rule still counts for you," he added. "You are rather noisy."

At the same moment, Wufei and Trowa both lifted their arms and the four fighters fell into their stances.

"Tell me only this," Hadji said to Quatre, who was standing at his shoulder looking on. "Do my friends stand even the slightest chance?"

"Probably not," Quatre replied quietly, sliding a knowing look across. "But Heero and Duo know that already. What they want to know is how hard they're willing to try."

"Begin!"


	7. Alliance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In honor of the holiday season, and the fact that I have just survived a 13-hour trip from Columbus to Minneapolis (hooray for sleeping in my own bed at last!), I give you two chapters for the price of one!
> 
> Still don't own the Gundam boys or the Quest family. But they play so nicely together!
> 
> I wish all readers a fine end of December whatever that means to you.
> 
> Enjoy!

The two matches happened simultaneously, but they were studies in opposites. Heero chose to react to Jonny's charge defensively, conserving his energy and neatly sidestepping his opponent. Meanwhile, Duo, moving with catlike silence, seemed to flow across the sand, almost catching Jessie off guard. Jonny lunged and missed a touch, and Heero's fingers brushed across the hollow of his throat as he spun away.

"One to Yuy," Wufei announced.

Duo attempted to get behind Jessie, but she was ready for that and struck backwards with her elbow. There was force in the blow, but it only just glanced off his back.

"One to Jessie," Trowa said.

The unexpected weakness in his attack seemed to light a new fire in Duo and he shifted tactics, moving from the stealthy form of a thief to the more open style of a street-brawler. Jessie got her hands up defensively almost in time, but Duo poked her in the side and tapped her on the head before she could step back.

"Two to Duo," Trowa reported.

Heero, for his part, was very still overall, moving very little even as Jonny shifted into proper judo techniques. Jonny feinted to one side and brought his leg around. At the last moment he struck out with the heel of his hand. He felt the brush against Heero's shoulder even as Heero's thumb pressed against his heart.

"One each to Yuy and Quest," Wufei reported.

Jessie was still recoiling from the double attack Duo had managed against her, and she felt her anger rise. For a moment she forgot about the touches, forgot that she was trying to be smooth and not aggressive. She just wanted a bit of her own back. So she took a page out of her dad's book and simply charged. Her arm was cocked to slam Duo and her speed, even in the sand, was quick as a lithe snake. But at the last moment Duo caught her hand and twisted her arm to pull her into a close hold.

"And that's that," he said with smug satisfaction. "You're not too bad, Red."

Jessie pulled away from him in disgust, but then realized what he'd called her and grinned at him. She hadn't won, but she had gotten something more important. Then she followed Trowa to get a better look at the fight not yet over between Heero and Jonny, Duo strolling along at her side.

Jonny had managed to close with Heero without getting hit, and he seemed to have some sort of strategy. At last he struck out with a foot and threw his body into the air for the kick. When he landed, his foot was solidly pressed against Heero's stomach. Jessie let out a cheer.

"Match to Heero," Wufei reported.

Everyone froze as Heero smiled very slightly. Then Jonny caught what Wufei had seen. Sometime between when he had launched himself into the air for the kick and when he had hit the ground, one leg extended in the blow, Heero had pressed the first two fingers of his left hand against his ankle. Heero lifted his right hand, forefinger pointed as though it were a gun, and lowered it until it was even with Jonny's chest.

"Satisfied?" Duo asked nobody in particular.

Trowa nodded silently and Wufei lifted his chin, which seemed to be an agreement. But Heero looked steadily down at the boy on the sand.

"You fight with your emotions. But you're reckless and you don't see the field. That speaks to inexperience. You're more than I expected, and you aren't more than you should be."

"More than I should be?" Jonny asked.

"He means," Quatre said, appearing near the others, "that you fight like somebody who has never fought a war. You may have fought for your life or the life of your family, but you are not a soldier. Which, to be fair, is good. Nobody should have to be a soldier."

An odd silence fell for a few moments. Then Heero shifted and he opened his right hand to pull Jonny up from the sand.

"Thanks," Jonny said.

"It was a good fight," Jessie commented.

"You're both fools," Hadji shook his head. At their looks, he shifted his turban a little awkwardly. "It is obvious to me that you were both permitted the touches you got. Not that they were humoring you, nor that they were dishonoring you. But that you simply cannot do what they can do."

"Who _are_ you?" Jessie asked again.

"I don't have authorization, Winner," Wufei warned, catching him as he began to respond. "That paperwork is on your head if you do this."

"They're not stupid," Duo argued. "They're gonna figure it out. Especially if this goes deep. You might as well just deal with it."

But before anyone else could say anything, Heero faced them.

"Wing Zero."

The silence was absolute. Then Duo nodded and smiled a little dangerously. "Deathscythe."

"Heavyarms." Trowa's voice had almost no inflection at all.

"Sandrock." Quatre's was even lower than usual, spoken heavy with remembrance.

"Yuy, the paperwork's on you. Shenlong," Wufei said after a moment.

Laid so bare, the five pilots waited. They'd received everything from silence to stunned silence to _furious_ silence upon revealing their identities. The reaction they got, however, was new.

"I _knew_ it!" Jessie crowed. "I knew it! You're the real Gundam pilots! It makes so much sense!"

"It does?" Duo asked, a little hesitantly.

"Jess is sort of a fangirl," Jonny teased. "She followed you throughout the war."

"Not the creepy kind," she said coldly, glaring at the teasing. "I was fascinated by the Gundam pilots' skill and determination and dedication to defending the people who needed defending. I know the war was complicated and mistakes were made," she said quickly, "but I always believed that the five Gundam pilots were doing their best. I just...never realized they were just kids."

"We weren't," Quatre said softly. "Not then, and not since."

"So, which was your favorite?" Duo asked, bouncing on his heels.

"Um," Jessie rubbed her nose awkwardly. "Um... Well, I guess...Heavyarms."

Duo took the opportunity to hoot quite a bit, that is, until Heero got around behind him and grabbed his braid, saying something deeply unfavorable in Japanese. Trowa stood as though nothing had been said at all. It was Wufei who made a sound suspiciously like a snort before speaking.

"Well, that's all right, then. He's taken." And he nodded to where Quatre was a little red in the face.

The wind came up then and forestalled any further discussion as everyone turned to get back to the tent where it was warmer. But they'd only just reached the warm glow when Duo stretched his arms and yawned.

"That's enough for one night for me," he said. "I'm going to head in. Wake me for breakfast, okay Cat?"

"Always," Quatre smiled at his friend and they shared a tiny nod.

"It is late," Wufei said. "We should return so we are rested for tomorrow's work." He gestured to Jonny and Jessie who looked like they wanted to protest.

"You will also want to tell your fathers our identities. We do not expect you to keep it from them," Heero said.

"Oh! Yeah, good point," Jonny conceded. "They'll be mad if they find out way after we do. They hate being in the dark." He turned to go, Bandit, finally woken out of the deep comfy sleep he'd surrendered to, at his heels.

"Hadji?" Jessie looked back. The adopted Quest hadn't moved, and in fact had taken a seat on a warm yellow pillow.

"Let them be," Trowa appeared at her elbow, Quatre's violin case carried carefully in his hands. "This is not for us."

"Hadj? You sure?" Jonny called.

"I am sure, my friend. Go in and speak to Race and Dr Quest. This is a journey I must undertake alone." He exchanged a glance with Quatre, who gave him a small nod.

"Don't forget to sleep," Trowa said softly, his eyes on his beloved. Then he moved a few long strides back to Quatre's side and stretched out his hand. Quatre took it and drew it to his cheek for a moment. Both closed their eyes and everyone looked away from the blissful expressions that slid across their faces. But Quatre broke the contact after a few breaths and smiled.

"I'll be in soon enough. Thank you, Trowa."

"You guys coming or what?" bellowed Duo from up the sand dune. Jonny and Jessie looked back at Hadji one last time before following Heero and Wufei, Trowa bringing up the rear as they retreated and left the two alone under the stars.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"So, may I ask why I am to be tested differently from my friends?" Hadji asked after several long minutes of silence. Quatre had dimmed many of the lanterns, leaving them with only a soft glow that was much overshadowed by the bright stars above.

"You'll have to forgive us," the blond said. "Now that you know who we are, I imagine you can begin to see why we are the way we are. In a certain sense, the five of us rely upon no one but each other. We have to live in the world, so we make the choice to trust when we must, or when we find people we care about. The war gave us many allies, and many enemies. And sometimes we can't tell the difference."

"I do not understand, not exactly, because I live in a world rather different from yours, though I can begin to see, as you say. But that does not answer my question."

"It will," Quatre smiled. "Jonny and Jessie remind us a lot of ourselves before the war, or of others we have met. They may not be warriors, but they are fighters and defenders. They have certain skills and they are relatively easy for us to understand. When a person fights, they become what they are; they can hide nothing from us that way. By sparring, Heero and Duo displayed to us all everything we might need to know about them."

He turned and his eyes seemed to cut straight through Hadji as he spoke.

"But you are different. You cannot be so easily defined. We could fight you and we would not understand you. So the others have left me to decide about you."

"How do you know I am not a threat?" Hadji asked honestly.

"If you were, and I don't believe it, then I still wouldn't be worried for two reasons," and here the smile that grew was predatory, a shark's smile. "The first is that I can probably handle you if you are a threat. I'm not exactly helpless. And the second is that, even if I'm wrong about you, you won't do anything to me."

"Because your friends have my friends," he realized.

"Of course. It's not necessary, obviously, but if everything I thought I knew about you turned out to be wrong, the barest signal from me and your four friends would become hostages in an instant. And you don't ever want to find out what happens when someone threatens one of the five of us. It's never pretty."

"I believe it," Hadji said a little breathlessly. Quatre shifted and his shark's smile faded into a real one again.

"Please don't worry. It won't come to that. I know you won't hurt me or mean me harm. I know that. I just need to understand you."

"Very well. What do you wish to know?"

But instead of answering, Quatre turned to face Hadji so that both of them were sitting in a half-lotus position, knees almost touching. Hadji wasn't surprised to see Quatre's hand stretching towards him, and he found himself lifting a hand to meet it halfway. It had to be this. It could be nothing else, not after that jolt of something inexplicable when Quatre had pulled him into the ceiling hours ago. He met the wide blue eyes fearlessly and pressed his palm to the outstretched pale hand.

The contact was again electric, sudden and strong, and Hadji realized all at once that whatever he'd felt before had been but a fraction of the young man's true self. Here, open and focused and seeking, Quatre's energy practically glowed. There was a powerful rushing feeling, as of standing up far too suddenly, and then Hadji felt his own mind begin to lighten and lift. It was precisely the sensation he experienced when he meditated deeply, dropping away his consciousness and slipping beyond. He could have chosen to fight it, but Hadji knew he was where he should be and there was no sense in being half-committed now. He released his doubt and let himself be drawn away.

In his mind's eye, then, he found himself in his usual surroundings. Hadji's meditations tended to begin and end in the same place – the lighthouse tower of the Quest compound. But, unlike the one in reality, this room was wholly his (unlike the space in the material world which was also used to store sensitive instruments and observation equipment). The broad windows on all sides were always open to the light wind and the bright crimson of sunset. The floor was thickly carpeted in deep red Persian rugs. Stands with candles ringed the round space, and the air smelt of incense and spices – curry and saffron and pepper. It was a space Hadji had built up in his mind over time, carefully laying each and every item in its place with his imagination. He could count the windows and the candles, could note the ash of the incense, could trace the patterns of the carpets. For any journey into the astral, for any exploration deep within the human spirit, it was always wise to have a place between the mundane and the beyond that was his in which to rest, prepare, and find himself if he was out of his depths in the consciousness of the universe.

But this time, Hadji was not alone, and, to be honest, he was not very surprised.

"Where are we?" Quatre asked after looking around a bit. His face was somehow much younger and more innocent, and Hadji wondered how much of what Quatre presented in the real world was a mask.

"Apparently, we are in my mind." At the raised eyebrows, he held up his hands. "Don't look at me. I have never experienced anything like this."

"Me either."

"Perhaps it is worth our time for you to tell me what it is about you that made this happen," Hadji suggested, taking a seat in his favorite spot, a particularly cushy rug beneath him and the view of the ocean before him.

"I'm an empath," Quatre said, sitting as well. "At first I could only sense powerful, all-consuming emotions, and only from a few specific people. Since the war, it's changed and grown a lot. Now I can pretty reliably feel the emotions of anyone around me if I unshield. And when I connect to those with whom my empathy originally began, not only can I share their emotions, but often they can share in mine as well."

"So you read hearts, rather than minds," Hadji said, thoughtfully. "I do not read minds myself, but much of my study has been of the mind and its many facets and powers. Meditation, as we are doing now, is something I practice regularly. And I often walk the astral plane as well. Though I have never had a visitor to this part of my mind before, I have met others on the astral plane, and they have found me."

"So perhaps my empathy allowed me to connect to your mind," Quatre finished the thought. "And rather than meeting you on the outside, in the astral, I have come with you inside." He paused for a moment, then said, with a slightly pinker face, "I never intended to invade your privacy. I am sorry for that."

"If I had wished to fight your intrusion, I would have. I was as curious as you were," Hadji shrugged.

"Actually, I think I was more ambitious than curious," Quatre said. Then he frowned. "And normally I wouldn't have told you that."

"Ah. In the mind, there are no filters. You may practice speaking carefully, but your thoughts are always unguarded to even yourself, so they are unguarded here."

"But that isn't true," Quatre replied. "I _have_ learned to guard my thoughts. I didn't have a choice. I…"

And with a visible effort, he clamped his mouth shut. But a sudden coldness swept through the room and the bright sunset darkened as if a storm had appeared. Hadji was torn between watching the changing landscape outside his room and his companion. The seas had become violent and rough, and the clouds roiled almost sickeningly. But across from him, Quatre had turned pale as death and was beginning to shake. He kept his jaw locked, and he had shut his eyes as well, his face screwed up in concentration.

"My friend," Hadji said worriedly, moving to his side and gripping his shoulders tightly, "whatever this is, for all your skill in burying it, it is about to break loose upon us both. I believe you must either control it or allow it to come and we shall battle it together."

Quatre's eyes flew open and, strangely, they were no longer that blue-green that was so striking. They had become flat, gun-metal grey. He spoke between his clenched teeth.

"No. The changes that would occur in your mind would be damaging. I will not permit it."

"Then breathe deeply. Focus on that which brings light and calm. This place is of our minds' making. You command it, not the other way around." Whatever the empathic powers had done when they'd come into contact with Hadji, this was no longer just his place. That Quatre's mind had changed so little until this crisis spoke more of his inexperience than his lack of equal presence.

To his surprise, Quatre began to whisper in what could only be Arabic. The cadence was familiar, though, and Hadji recognized it as some sort of prayer or verse. The words fell softly, but they seemed to take flight, building in fervor and joy rather than panic. Quatre's eyes began to shift away from that odd grey color and he started to breathe more easily. The clouds retreated and the waves calmed.

When he fell silent, the lighthouse was as it should be once more.

"Thank you," Quatre said, looking to Hadji with apology and affection. "Without your concern and your kindness I'm not sure I would have been able to calm myself. Even words of serenity need the fuel of the heart to become real."

"When we are no longer bound so deeply, perhaps you will someday share the cause behind that which I have just witnessed," Hadji said, but there was no expectation in his voice. "For something that can shake even your soul so badly must be a heavy burden to bear."

"It is. And it is not your burden and never will be," Quatre said, shaking his head. "But thank you again."

"So what we have learned, then, is that our gifts combined draw you with me into meditation, linking our minds. With practice, I believe we would find ourselves in a world of shared meaning, not only the place that is of my heart."

"And here," Quatre continued, obviously a little relieved to be on a new topic, "there is no capacity for falsehood. The fact that I may keep a part of myself hidden is not that it isn't present, but that I control it. I imagine you have your own demons you keep from this place."

The slightest flicker of every candle in the room was the only evidence that Quatre was right, but they both knew it regardless.

"Then I wonder if the bond continues into the astral or if it only permits this joined unconsciousness." Hadji wanted his face to be neutral, but as Quatre had said, no falsehoods could stand. He was eager to try.

"I have never been to the astral," Quatre said, "but with you to guide me, I am willing to see if I am capable of following."

"Then to get there from here, sit beside me and close your eyes." Quatre did as he was bid and settled into the lotus position. "I am going to take your hand and begin my ascent into the beyond. If at any time I lose my grip upon you, you should return here safely."

Quatre nodded and Hadji reached for a nearby hourglass, one of the smallest in the tiny nook of the room that held them; he had long since trained himself to return to this place after a set amount of time in the beyond, and he did not want to risk a multi-hour exploration for the first attempt. Then he settled beside Quatre and took a firm grip on his hand. Hadji turned the hourglass and let a deep breath out, allowing his eyes to close. The process of entering the astral planes was near impossible to describe, but the closest sense he had was of a lifting up and out of himself a second time, beyond even his subconsciousness, and entering a place outside imagination.

There is no time in the astral, and thoughts come not as words but as flows of being. Feelings and memories are water droplets suspended in the air and the ties back to Earth and life hang as ribbons that fade into clouds. There is music to breathe, wisdom for grass, and the sun that hangs above is lit with the souls of all who have found perfection. Shades of others on similar journeys may appear, but they look not like their bodies; they are the shapes of their spirits. Things do not happen in the astral because there is no action and reaction. There simply is.

But the soul that knew its name was Hadji felt joy to know that a soul called Quatre had joined it.


	8. Evaluation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Same note, twice as sleepy as in the previous chapter.
> 
> Enjoy!

"Hadji! Are you okay?" Jessie pounced almost the moment he walked into the main room of their little space.

"You were gone an awfully long time, Hadji," Race commented neutrally. But his eyes were moving sharply over Hadji as though looking for anything amiss.

"We…lost track of time. We did much talking," Hadji answered lamely, sitting easily in one of the chairs. His family was looking at him with a myriad of expressions from outright worry to mild curiosity, and he smiled under the onslaught of concern. But he was going to have to be helpfully vague.

"So…what did Quatre want?" Jonny asked at last.

"Quatre and I have some interesting things in common," he replied. "Whatever else he may be, Quatre Raberba Winner is a deeply caring and sincere individual. That kindness he has shown us so far is not a part of his business persona, but a rather true part of his character."

"I thought as much myself," Dr Quest put in. "Our brief conversation at breakfast conveyed that to me. But I'm pleased you think so as well."

"Even though he was a Gundam pilot?" Jonny asked.

Hadji looked to Race and Dr Quest at this question to check their reactions; apparently learning that their host and his four friends had been at the center of the Eve violence had not surprised them, as neither showed a telltale reaction to hearing news that was still fresh and shocking. But then, Race had seen Quatre in action, and no one could have missed the demeanor of Heero and Wufei, the latter of whom was far too young to be a Preventers agent under anything but the most unusual circumstances. They might not have known, Hadji concluded, but they certainly had suspected something extraordinary about them.

"Jonny, being able to kill doesn't make you a bad person," Race said gently. "In fact, the Gundam pilots did a great deal to prevent unnecessary deaths on both sides in the conflict when they were able, from all that gossip Jess shared during the war. I've killed people to protect you kids and Benton."

"Yeah, but you're…" Jessie trailed off.

"He's not your age," Dr Quest finished gently. "And that only makes Quatre and the rest of them more remarkable. They've chosen to share an incredibly important secret with us. There are countries in the Earth Sphere that would execute them without hesitation were their identities known. I think it is best that we respect the trust they have given us and see in them the best and not the worst of what they have been."

"But what did Quatre want?" Jessie turned back to Hadji. "What did he want you to do?"

"Ah. My friends, that I cannot tell you. What transpired between Quatre and I is not only quite private, but difficult to explain to literal types such as yourselves. Just understand that I have looked into the eyes of the tiger and he has looked into mine, and we understand one another."

Hadji smiled a bit ruefully at the consternation in the faces of everyone but Benton Quest – his family was not typically known to enjoy half answers. On the other hand, they trusted him to know what he was saying and opted to leave him alone, going back to discussing the reality of being partnered with the legendary Gundam pilots. Quatre's friends had not been quite so patient.

> _If he lived to be a very old man indeed, Hadji would never forget the shining surprise and rapture in Quatre's eyes as they came out of their joined trance and found themselves rather cold to the bone in a tent in the desert at night. Quatre had offered Hadji a thick rug with which to wrap himself and led the way back down into the compound, his feet carrying him unerringly even in the pitch blackness of the darkened hallways. They had moved in silence because there had been nothing to say. No bond remained outside of the meditation that had brought them together, but still Hadji felt he could tell that Quatre's sense of him was much deeper now, and they did share a certain understanding of one another._
> 
> _But as they'd made their way from the hidden elevator back into the main building below ground, they had moved only a few steps into the corridor when two shadows appeared. Apparently Quatre's physical reflexes were sharp indeed, for Hadji had not noticed the change until he'd been smoothly and speedily pulled behind Quatre and the Arab had his hands up and his fists closed. But a beat later he had huffed a laugh and relaxed his defensive posture._
> 
> _"You know better," he had chided the shadows as they resolved into Trowa and Heero. "If I were Wufei or Duo and couldn't feel that it was you, I'd have attacked."_
> 
> _Heero's eyes had burned into Hadji and Trowa had stepped very close to the pair of them. There was an uneasy moment until at last Heero had said in a clipped tone, "What did he do to you, Katoru?"_
> 
> _"What do you mean?" Quatre had been confused._
> 
> _"Quatre, you…dimmed. To both of us. You didn't vanish entirely, but you were muted somehow. If it hadn't ended when it did, we were coming after you." Trowa's face was impassive, but his green eyes under that long hair were penetrating and Hadji had realized how worried he really had been._
> 
> _"I'm sorry," Quatre rushed to assure them. In fact, he'd reached out a hand and taken Heero by the wrist and with his other pressed his palm against Trowa's chest. "Hadji is unusual. Like me but different. We…it's a long story. But I'm all right. I haven't left you."_
> 
> _Hadji hadn't needed to be an empath to know that both Trowa and Heero relaxed at the touch, that whatever they had feared was relieved. He thought back to what Quatre had said and realized that the Gundam pilots must all be very close, and these two obviously cared about Quatre a great deal if they shared some sort of awareness of him. He'd of course caught the hint from Wufei's teasing and the interactions between Trowa and Quatre to understand that they were together, but he was a little surprised by Heero's vehemence._
> 
> _He had also remembered what Quatre had mentioned casually about those who threaten the friends of the once-pilots and, at the receding steel and protectiveness radiating off Heero and Trowa, was suddenly glad they had come out of their trance when they did. What might have happened made him feel cold._
> 
> _Quatre had noticed, of course, and had turned to Hadji for a moment, then nodded._
> 
> _"Hadji's my friend," he had said firmly, almost an order. "He and I will probably try it again sometime, and there's a lot we can learn from each other. I'll give you a warning next time, but don't you ever do anything to him about this, okay? He didn't hurt me."_
> 
> _Trowa had nodded but said nothing. Heero, however, had glared at Hadji, then looked closely at Quatre._
> 
> _"If he does hurt you, or if we feel you go completely, I will kill him."_
> 
> _"No, Heero. You won't." That had brokered no argument and was as firm as Gundanium. Then, releasing them both, Quatre had deliberately turned his back and put a hand on Hadji's shoulder. "Come on. Let's get you back to your family so I can deal with mine."_

"Hadj? Hello?"

Hadji broke out of his thoughts to see Jonny almost nose-to-nose with him. It was beneath him to startle backwards, but he did twitch slightly.

"Sorry. I was considering."

"Apparently!" Race smiled. "He was only calling you for two minutes."

"Oh. My apologies. About what?" he turned innocently to Jonny.

"What do you think about them? I know you like Quatre, but what do you think about the others? You usually have a pretty good sense for people." Jonny shared a knowing look that was full of meaning – Hadji had always been a bit more worldly, especially when they were younger. Living on the streets will make you a good judge of character rather quickly. And having a peek into the mind and soul of a person doesn't hurt either.

"I think," he said slowly, "that they are brave beyond the telling of it. They have survived a war with their bodies and souls torn apart and rebuilt. They do not trust anyone but themselves, and they understand one another to a level unlike any I've ever seen before. They would do more than die or kill for each other; I believe they would literally do anything for one another. They like us enough to trust us, and they need us, but they would kill us in our beds if we were a threat. And they would mourn us, sincerely, each in his own way."

He stopped and thought about something else, then, with everyone still staring at him, continued.

"I think they all look to one another for something different. Quatre is their leader, certainly, in many things I should imagine, and the one they therefore align themselves towards even more than any other. They seem to turn to Wufei as a source for insight, but not a moral guide – more like a sense for the proper limits of things. Duo is certainly their feint, the wolf in sheep's clothing trusted to sound out even each other while appearing non-threatening. Trowa…I don't know, I guess. He seems to have the most restraint, but when he speaks they all listen. And Heero, I believe, they see as their best warrior, the one who will succeed where they all fail, protect them all when they cannot protect themselves. They need each other."

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Are you sure he's not a threat?"

Quatre should have known better than to expect that Heero of all people would let things go. He'd only just left Hadji with the Quests and turned back towards his own room when the familiar prickle warned him of the presence of his Japanese friend. Heero was leaning casually against the wall at the turn in the hallway, not looking at Quatre and, for all intents and purposes, seemingly very relaxed.

But Quatre knew better. How could he not?

"Heero." He sighed and began walking as intended, knowing Heero would follow. "I'm sure."

"Sometimes I don't feel the connection," Heero said, picking a different line of conversation for his own reasons. "When I'm on Earth and you're in space, it's like it isn't there unless I look for it."

"Space always made it easier for my empathy to work in the beginning, if you remember," Quatre replied. "The Earth originally had a dampening effect. Wufei thinks that the distance and the sheer amount of mass between me and you or Trowa when we're that far apart is what interferes."

"But when we're both here on Earth, it's the same as when we're in space."

"More or less," Quatre conceded. The nuances of what he knew of his gift and how it had grown weren't terribly important to this conversation. Heero, for his extremely well-practiced air of nonchalance, was really anything but casual. His heart echoed of loss, and in the shadow of that loss was a loneliness Quatre remembered all too well. He unconsciously pushed the knuckles of one hand into his sternum to calm the ache he could still feel bouncing around in the person before him.

"You know what you're doing." That was a statement.

"Yes, Heero."

Heero's intense blue eyes caught Quatre's and they stared at one another for a moment. It had been Heero's near-death explosion that had first triggered Quatre's "space heart" as they'd called it, bringing to violent life what had only been the slightest niggling in the back of his mind since childhood. But the two had never met face-to-face, not until the ZERO System. When Heero had been the one piloting Wing Zero, Quatre's empathy had been the thing that led him back to sanity, as the blond's heart had somehow reached his through all the confusion and madness of ZERO.

From that moment, they had had a bond of their own. Heero didn't experience it the way Trowa seemed to, but there was no denying that he could feel a tendril of himself forever connected to Quatre. Heero would always be able to find him, like a compass pointing north. And powerful, unbridled emotions from Quatre tended to poke at him, even if he couldn't interpret them. Quatre, for his part, was incredibly aware of Heero when he unshielded, enough so that Heero could feel the difference in himself when he knew Quatre was listening to his heart.

It had changed them both, given them both something to hold onto in the chaos and pain and loss of war. Quatre, broken inside from his own run-in with ZERO and his guilt over Trowa, had latched onto that connection and used it to lead himself back from the brink. Heero, having spent a lifetime teaching himself to ignore emotions only to learn that they were valuable after all, discovered his own heart partly by listening to Quatre's.

"You don't like when our connection is distant," Quatre spoke again.

"I don't like when it changes if I don't know why," Heero tried to downplay his feelings. But lying to an empath never goes well – Heero knew Quatre could see through him. If he allowed himself, he had to admit that he knew Quatre was aware of how important this bond was to him. Heero hadn't even wanted to be bound to his own life during the war, and now he was held by a link to a bright heart that was open and full of kindness and affection.

He didn't love Quatre the way Trowa did, but in his own way he loved him very, very much. And he was never at ease when he had reason to think he may have lost him.

They walked in silence for a few more minutes until Quatre reached the door to the large room he shared with Trowa. A few steps down were the rooms set aside for Duo and Wufei and Heero when they visited. It was the least he could do – in one way or another, all the Gundam pilots had been homeless for a while. So Quatre gave them all a home in every one of his just in case.

"Thanks for worrying about me," Quatre smiled.

"Hn."

"Good night, Heero." He nodded and stepped into the room, closing the door softly.

With no one to see in the hallway, Heero allowed himself the weakness of a moment's relieved sigh. Then he turned and went into his own room, locking the door and preparing for bed. There was no reason to waste any more thought about Quatre's safety. He was as safe as he could be, and he had a few individuals who would kill to keep him that way. Now was the time to sleep before the next day brought more danger.

Heero fell asleep listening to his own heart beat and feeling a beat echo back in return.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Jonny?"

"Yeah Hadj?"

"Why are you staring at the ceiling?"

Jonny propped himself up on his elbow and looked to the other bed in the room where Hadji had been sleeping, or so he'd thought. Hadji's eyes weren't even open. He looked like he was completely asleep.

"How do you do that?" he asked.

"Eyes in the back of my turban," Hadji replied drolly. Then, "Jonny, I do not need eyes to see that you are troubled. And when you cannot sleep and you are troubled you stare at the ceiling and think yourself into enough circles to add to the rings of Saturn. And you sigh a great deal. I don't need eyes to hear you sighing."

"Very funny."

If Jessie had been in the room, she would have hounded Jonny until he told her whatever he was thinking. Race would have made not-subtle commentary about hypothetical scenarios until he picked on the one that would get Jonny to talk. And his dad would simply ask and then offer some insight that would be uncannily relevant and Jonny would respond in spite of himself. Only Hadji would give him an invitation to share his thoughts and then wait quietly until he decided to do so. It was something awesome about his brother – Jonny knew Hadji respected him, his privacy, and his need to work stuff out on his own first in a way nobody else did.

"It's just…it's a lot, you know," he said eventually. "We've done some amazing things, but we didn't go to war. I remember when the colonies first declared war against the Earth and how many people wanted dad to take a side. And he wouldn't."

"Dr Quest was and is a firm believer in nonviolence as a means of solving problems on a large scale," Hadji said. "I wouldn't say he is a true pacifist the way Relena Peacecraft is, just because I've seen him punch someone who intended us harm."

"Right. We kind of flew under the radar for the war because of dad's connections and his neutral position. Race didn't even get recalled. I can't imagine what our lives would have been like if we'd gone to war the way those guys did."

"I think we would not be having this conversation," Hadji answered slowly. "It is likely one or both of us would have died in battle. We may hold our own in hand-to-hand, but neither of us is a soldier and neither of us is an expert pilot for anything other than the Dragonfly, and barely that."

"Hey, speak for yourself. Which of us got the 'Fly all the way to London and landed with a gimpy third engine that one time?" Jonny grinned.

"Regardless, I believe I see your point. We watched the news and we got updates from Jessie and others like her, but we didn't really live the war the way they did."

"When dad first told us about meeting with Quatre," Jonny said thoughtfully, "he mentioned that Quatre's older sister wanted him to have a father figure somehow. I didn't ask, but I'd be surprised if any one of those guys has any family alive other than the ridiculous number of Winner sisters out there."

"Duo, at least, was a child of the streets," Hadji's voice was soft. "It takes one to know one."

"Yeah? Geez. I can't…I can't imagine it, Hadj. Not having dad around, not having Race? Not having you and Jessie to bail me out when I'm in over my head, let alone in a war-zone? How alone must those guys have been during the war?" Jonny propped himself up on an elbow and looked across the gap between the beds at Hadji.

"They are not alone now," he replied firmly. "They have each other."

"I guess that's true."

"No, it matters, Jonny," Hadji's voice was picking up in intensity. "Do not dismiss the importance of a family that has come to you when you had none. I shall never forget what it meant for me."

"Hadj…" Jonny trailed off.

"But I was a mere child when Dr Quest decided I had earned his kindness. For our friends, they only found one another during or perhaps even after the war. They have been alone and broken much longer than I."

"You're not broken, Hadji," Jonny argued stubbornly. To his surprise, Hadji got out of his bed and perched on the edge of Jonny's.

"No, but I was. Pasha had given me a great deal, but it was not enough, and he had no patience for child-rearing. All the serenity and perspective I have gained in the last several years came from a combination of my inner beliefs and in the security of a family upon which to base them."

Jonny sat up and drew his knees up.

"I don't really remember my mom, you know," he said slowly. "Dad's all I've ever known."

"The same is true for me as well. Your father is the only man who has ever been such for me."

"But you don't really believe that."

Now it was Hadji's turn to be surprised. He looked piercingly at Jonny, who folded his legs down and began fidgeting with the blanket in his lap. The dimness of the room didn't lend much to sight, but both boys had always had good night vision, and they could see enough. Jonny's face was upturned and there was worry on his brow.

"Jonny, I do not understand."

"You know, we've never really talked about it, but thinking about those guys alone with no families, it just makes me realize that for as long as I've known you, you've never called him 'dad.' Not once." There was hesitation in Jonny's words, but he did not back down.

"That's true. He was 'Dr Quest' to me first and so he has remained. But is that why you believe I do not fully accept my place in your family?"

"No, it's not just that! You just did it again. 'Your family,' Hadji. It should be 'our family' when you talk. You put yourself outside and I just, I don't like it, okay?" Jonny looked inexplicably younger as he met Hadji's gaze with his own face lit up with indignation and worry.

"I do not understand how the unfortunate lives of our new friends have caused you to reevaluate so much," Hadji looked carefully at him. "I will strive to relieve your concern, but this is twice in the recent past you have asked me if I felt secure where I am."

"Yeah, I know." Now Jonny's tone had turned testy. "But after that conversation in the lighthouse where you made me feel better about dad, about not being the son he might want me to be, I've been thinking a lot about it. And the more I thought about it, the more it bugged me, okay?"

"I am grateful you care so much," Hadji said curiously, "but I wonder at the reason for your irritation. Shouldn't it be me that would be upset if there were some slight to me?"

"Well, you'd think so," Jonny huffed, "but you don't seem to notice. You always refer to 'your family' instead of 'our family,' or 'Dr Quest' instead of 'dad.' But the worst part is that we let you do it. I guess that's what bugs me."

Hadji smiled, touched. He leaned forward and gripped Jonny's shoulder.

"Jonny. I thank you for being so affronted on my behalf. But it's all right. I do not share your blood, and that is a difference. I am unlike you literal types, and that is a difference. I am a part of your family, and I am content to consider myself as such. I am luckier than most of our new friends in this way. Please do not let it trouble you, my friend."

"Hadj...I just want you to know you belong. Even if you're different."

"I do know that. You have given a great deal for as long as we have known one another to prove it. If I ever had any doubts, they would never include you, Jonny Quest."

Jonny nodded, unable to think of anything to say that he really felt comfortable saying. Hadji took that as a cue to return to his own bed, and they both settled back in for a few minutes. Then Jonny spoke again.

"So...you think those guys are okay? The way you're okay? Even if they don't have families."

"They do have family, Jonny, in each other. And from what I have seen, it has given them as much as ever you have given me. Do not doubt them. And go to sleep. This is too much philosophy for the middle of the night after such a very long day."

Jonny snorted at the extremely prim voice Hadji had adopted, sounding exactly like one of the poor women who had attempted to care for the Quest household and its members and left in a fit of misplaced-mothering, and giggled as he rolled over. He really was lucky. He'd had Hadji at his side for most of his life. And the pilots had each other. He could live with those answers for now.

Jonny let himself sleep at last, secure at least that his brother knew he was wanted.


	9. Moving Out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dedicating this one to every one of my friends who is as much a non-morning-person as Jessie. I'm not a morning person, either, but I can play one on TV.
> 
> Still don't own them. Even if I wanted to.
> 
> Enjoy!

Morning came way too early for Jessie's liking. She dressed in her clothes, noticing that the ones she'd been wearing upon arrival to Rock Island had been washed, and managed to get herself to breakfast with everybody else.

"Good morning Red!" Duo waved brightly at her. She looked at him through one eye and dragged a cup of coffee over.

"Don't even try," Race said, carefully not cracking a smile. "Jess doesn't _do_ mornings."

"That's an understatement," Jonny laughed.

"I believe Jessie's current thoughts involve murdering everyone necessary to permit her to go back to sleep. Barring that, maiming anyone who prevents her from drinking at least a quart of caffeine," Hadji commented mildly. But then, he was sitting several seats down from her.

"If she's going to murder anybody, can it be Maxwell?" Wufei dead-panned.

"Oh, Fei-fei, you wound me! What did I ever do to you?" he whined.

"Um, Duo, you kind of broke into his room this morning to wake him up by singing at the top of your lungs," Quatre rubbed his nose.

"To be honest, I'd kill you too," Heero added without looking up from his ever-present laptop.

As Duo became the focus of attention, alternately defending himself verbally and launching small spoonfuls of hot cereal in what he called "aggressive self-defense," Jessie sank into the wonderfulness of having a very large mug of coffee before her. She didn't care what went on around her as long as she didn't have to interact with it.

"Here," Benton passed a plate of fruit over.

"Thanks, Dr Quest," she managed almost politely. He smiled indulgently and let her be.

The process of getting onto the very nifty private jet Quatre had on-site was relatively simple; when they finished eating and when Trowa had dug all the oaty milk out of his hair, Rashid appeared to walk with them to the hangar.

"Master Quatre, are you certain you do not want any of us to come with you?" he asked.

"Yes," the blond nodded. "This is just reconnaissance. Heero checked the satellite this morning and there's nobody at the compound. We'll be fine." He smiled warmly at the man towering over him.

"I shall continue our investigations from here, and if you need us..."

"I know you'll be there." Quatre put his right hand over his heart and bowed, and Rashid returned the gesture.

As they passed him to board the craft, Jessie saw an interesting look pass between Rashid and Trowa. She might not be a good morning person, but she still had eyes. She guessed there was a standing arrangement between the two to look out for Quatre, and given how important he was to both of them, she couldn't blame them. If she had an army of guys to call in any time her dad or Dr Quest or the boys needed it, she'd have used it any time she wanted.

"So, who's our pilot?" Race asked idly, stepping into the extremely posh interior of the jet.

Quatre shook his head. "Not me. I've got to get some work done for WEI."

"That leaves four," Wufei said. "Since I haven't anything to report."

"What about Race?" Dr Quest offered. The five ex-Gundam pilots exchanged glances and, surprisingly, snickered.

"Sure," Duo said, merriment dancing in his eyes. "Give it a shot."

Race raised an eyebrow, but moved towards the cockpit, the rest of the Quests and Jessie in tow. But when he pushed open the door, he understood the young men's amusement. He shook his head and laughed.

"All right. Joke's on me, fellas."

"It's just...this is one of my private crafts," Quatre said from behind, a little sheepishly. "We can all drive or pilot or operate pretty much any vehicle or system you put in front of us. But we're most familiar with, well, mobile suits."

"So Cat went ahead and had a set of jets made for him special," Duo added.

The cockpit did not look anything like even the Dragonfly, and that was unusual even by jet standards. There was no pilot or copilot seat at all, nor any of the standard panels and dashboards and instruments. Instead, it looked identical to the interior of a mobile suit, except there were three seats in it – one facing forward and one facing to each side.

"One person can pilot the jet from any of the three stations," Heero said unexpectedly. "But really the secondary two are more as backups in case of an emergency. Instead, they plug directly into many of WEI's systems. The jet is designed such that Quatre could, in theory, operate his entire company from here with minimal disruption."

"Why?" Jonny had to ask.

"Winner is a first-rate Preventers agent," Wufei said. "Sometimes we need him and his resources, and this allows him to join us on Earthbound missions without his board of directors knowing any better."

"That's not quite true, but close enough," Quatre conceded. "So, like I said, I'm out. Who's taking point?"

Heero, Trowa, Duo, and Wufei all looked intently at one another for a moment, ignoring the blond as he settled himself into the right-hand seat and began turning systems on. The four stared, unmoving and saying nothing, for several moments. Then, after a moment, Duo let out an aggravated sigh.

"All right! I'm out. I'll keep our guests company," he said in a half-mocking tone. "Jerks."

The remaining trio all quirked a smile, but continued staring at one another.

"How do you decide?" Race asked. "Since I don't see any rock-paper-scissors going on."

"It's literally a staring contest," Benton said. "First to blink was Duo, so he's out. Correct?"

"Got it in one, Doc," the braided boy shrugged. "We decided on that method because it betrays who is most tired. But it usually takes a few minutes. Come on. Let's get strapped in."

Duo led the way back to the very comfortable seats and sprawled on what was truly a couch. In fact, the front cabin of the jet looked more like a cylindrical living room than a plane at all, complete with bookshelves and some modest art. Jessie gravitated towards a chaise-lounge and settled in. She smiled as she noted the very subtle seatbelts tucked carefully into the cushions. For safety's sake she snapped hers on, then noted the plush blanket at her feet and drew it up.

"Comfy?" Hadji teased.

"Yes," she grumbled. "And strapped in. And sleeping now. So there ha. Go away."

"Still not awake, apparently," Race winked at the others.

They all found a place to get comfortable, though Jonny did peek his head through the door to the next cabin back. Beyond a nicely-sized bathroom and a fair kitchenette was a bedroom with one largeish bed and a pair of bunks. Wufei appeared at his elbow, surprising him when he cleared his throat.

"The panels next to the beds each contain a fully-stocked medical station," he said, leaning on the doorway. "As I said, Winner helps us on Preventers missions, so we are usually prepared for the worst."

"So you're not piloting, then," Hadji said as they returned to the front cabin. Wufei wrinkled his nose.

"No. Yuy and Barton are still staring at one another. Honestly, those two are more stubborn than is necessary for any one person."

But a moment later, a voice spoke over the intercom. "Please be seated."

"Oh, that's good," Duo said conversationally. "Trowa's a nice sensible pilot."

"Unlike you, you flying madman," Wufei returned, taking the one seat in the space that looked more utilitarian than comfortable. "Trowa is very steady," he said to the Quests. "Heero enjoys that these jets are built for particular speed, and thus is sometimes a bit enthusiastic. But be grateful it is not Maxwell today. I am convinced he wants to see if a jet can be broken apart in midair."

"No," Duo argued, "I already know that it can be. I just want to know how much flexibility is built into the auxiliary thrusters."

"There you have it," Hadji nodded sagely. "Recklessness with a logical reason. I can't imagine where I might have encountered such a thing before."

Jonny coughed and Benton and Race laughed. The engines began to whir and the jet moved forward smoothly. Only by looking out the windows did they know they were gaining speed. Much faster than any commercial jet, the plane accelerated along the underground runway. At the very last moment, a portion of the underground roof opened and the jet leaped into the sky, effortless as breathing.

"So what is Heero doing up in front?" Dr Quest asked as the craft leveled out.

"He's still trying to hack a few more satellites for surveillance before we arrive," Wufei answered. "Which is a pointless exercise. But you'll see why in time."

"That's not cryptic or anything," Race commented good-naturedly.

"What do you know that I don't, Wu-man?" Duo asked.

"Wufei. Not 'Wu-man.' And for that, I'm not going to enlighten you."

"You're so mean."

Jessie had fallen asleep by now, and Wufei was disinclined to be particularly talkative, which left the rest of the Quest family with Duo. This was possibly a good thing, as Duo was the most outgoing of the ex-pilots other than Quatre, and he could tell many very funny stories. But he made sure to jab at the Preventers agent in their midst as often as possible. Jonny was eager to hear Duo's adventures, and he shared a few of his own, with helpful and not-helpful sometimes-mortifying input from Race and his father. Hadji, for his part, seemed content to copy Wufei in half-meditating, half-listening.

Until about an hour into the flight when a shout from the cockpit brought everyone running.

"WHAT?" Quatre practically roared, and for those who had never heard him raise his voice it was surprising indeed.

"What is it?" Heero demanded, out of his seat and leaning over Quatre's when the five Quests and two more pilots stormed the cockpit in a rush.

"Give me a minute," Quatre ordered. He turned back to the console. "Rashid." The man's face appeared almost at once. "I'm sending you a report. Cross-reference it against all other potential non-WEI sites that might fit the pattern. I want to know every single site that might be at risk."

"Understood, Master Quatre," he replied, signing off.

"My assistant just informed me that several WEI locations have been broken into in the last few days," Quatre said, pulling off his earpiece and facing everyone. "Every single location that was hit has one very frightening similarity – they all housed either nuclear materials or chemicals that can be weaponized. WEI doesn't make weapons," he forestalled the obvious, "but chemicals are chemicals and they can be mixed in many ways."

"How many?" Wufei asked.

"As of about 20 minutes ago, 18 different sites. And that's not all." He closed his eyes. "People were killed during many of the breaches. Whoever did this is not only coordinated, but ruthless. Secretaries and paper-pushers, murdered just to get them out of the way."

"There are no coincidences," Trowa said from where he still sat, eyes on the sky. "This is connected."

"Yes, and it's beginning to make a frightening amount of sense," Quatre nodded. "Somebody is getting ready for a war."

"I'll alert Une," Wufei said curtly, drawing away and pulling out his phone.

"What now?" Jonny clenched his fists. He hated being helpless. And he _hated_ that people were dying.

"We continue on our current trajectory," Heero answered coldly. "We need more information. And we will get it at your home. Then we will stop them from doing any more harm."

"If they're starting a war," and Duo's voice had become frighteningly dark, "they have no idea what they're in for. If they ask Shinigami to rise again, believe me, he will."

"Agreed," Heero turned back to his seat. "Une has given us clearance for standard Level Zero mission parameters."

"What does that mean?" Race wanted to know.

"It means," Quatre met their eyes unflinchingly, "that Preventers has given us latitude to do whatever we have to in order to save lives and ensure the peace. It means that we will not be taking some of the hostiles into custody."

"Operation Meteor," Trowa spoke in an absolutely flat tone made more eerie by the fact that he had not turned away from the windshield to speak, "had one cardinal rule. We have...adjusted it for civilian life." They could hear the unspoken "as civilian as we are, anyway" in his voice.

"And that is?" Hadji wasn't entirely sure he wanted to know.

"That no one shall face a Gundam and escape," Quatre said.

"If they threaten us," Heero added in the most deadly-sounding words yet, "and if we have no choice, we will kill them all without mercy."

 

-==OOO==-

 

Landing at the nearby airstrip to the Quest compound, it was a much more solemn group that exited the jet than had boarded it in the first place. Quatre had already arranged for a few cars to meet them, so they were easily able to get to the isolated house.

Even from outside the main gates, it was obvious that someone had been there. The security system did not respond properly and it was necessary to use the manual override to get the gates open enough for the vehicles to pass through. At the house, the kitchen door had been kicked in and there was chaos throughout inside. But Benton went straight to the lighthouse.

"Everything's in here," he said. This door had been blown open, as it was reinforced and could not have been merely broken by a person's foot, and the laboratory on the lowest level was a wreck. The servers were still upright and intact more or less, but the desk had been tipped over and papers were everywhere.

"They must have connected a line here," he pointed to the proper input-jack. "It would have bypassed most of our best firewalls."

"What a mess," Jessie lamented, already moving to the bookcase and beginning to set things to rights. "What was the point of this? Did they have to destroy everything?"

"Actually, that's what they should have done," Quatre put in. Everyone turned to him. "Well, if they didn't want us to know what they'd been looking for or where they'd found it, they should have blown the whole compound up. It would have made tracing them much harder for us."

"Blow up our home?" Jonny's eyes were wide.

"It's what we would have done," Trowa affirmed. "No loose ends. No evidence."

"You really are the ultimate soldiers," Race said admiringly. "You even position yourselves for it."

The other Quests looked around the room, taking a moment to see what he had recognized at once. Heero had settled down on the floor near the bank of servers, his laptop plugged in, and was working. The other four ex-pilots had situated themselves around the room very specifically. Trowa was halfway up the stairs, overlooking the whole room as well as the door. Duo was directly opposite the door to the outside, but not in sight of it. Wufei was positioned just inside the door-frame, where he could react to any inbound individual before they knew he was there. And Quatre stood almost over Heero, protecting him while he focused on his work.

And it wasn't just that they were perfectly arranged to handle any attack from the outside with decisive and unexpected force. Even the five Quests couldn't keep them all in sight at once. And, realizing that, they were surprised to note that not once in the times they had been in the same room with more than two of the once-Gundam pilots had they ever been able to see them all at once. If one of the Quests had made a threatening move, there was always a pilot on their blind side to counter them.

It wasn't the most trusting scenario, but then, it was hard to blame the five for instinctively preparing themselves to be attacked even by their allies. Perhaps especially by their allies.

"No, not really," Heero countered, looking up. "If we were perfect soldiers, we wouldn't be alive."

"Yeah. _Some_ of us got drilled into our heads that having any kind of weaknesses like, I dunno, friendship, is a loss on the battlefield," Duo put in darkly. Then he grinned impishly. "Of course, for some of us, it didn't sink in as well. Me and Cat had a lot to teach those three lumps."

"Lumps, Maxwell?" Wufei arched an eyebrow. "The logic behind an emotionless, efficient machine is sound when it comes to war. The reality is, however, that no one can fight with honor and do so coldly."

"And the more we tried to do it that way," Quatre added, "the worse it got for everybody. The Doctors were sure the reason I...failed was that I was imperfect."

"You didn't fail," Trowa shook his head. "And the Doctors were hardly human themselves in their way, so I wouldn't take their words to heart."

"He didn't," Heero said. "The Doctors wanted Quatre to be more like me. They berated him for his kindness. But it was when Quatre was himself that he saved me from madness on the moon."

Somewhere in this conversation, the Quests had become furniture to the pilots. What they discussed they had obviously been through before, but it seemed like they all needed the reassurance of hearing it again after whatever Race's comment had triggered. Of knowing that being human and heartfelt and not shut off to the world was the right path. They referenced things the Quests could not identify, but they didn't need to. They understood enough not to ask.

Suddenly Bandit, who had been happy to nose around the mess by Jonny's feet up until now, started to bark. The response was immediate.

"Zero Three," Quatre ordered in a clipped tone. With the silence of a cat, Trowa jumped from his perch on the stairs. But rather than hitting the floor, Trowa swung himself upwards. In a moment he had vanished onto the upper landing where he could look out over the whole compound.

A moment later, the earpieces everyone had, including the Quests, though they had had to argue a bit to get them, switched on.

"Seven hostiles approaching from the northwest," came Trowa's voice. "Armed and standard armor."

"Not even a challenge," Duo said, but his face had no laughter.

"Zero Three, you've got cover," Quatre said, already moving. "Protect Zero One and the Quests. We'll handle our guests."

"You might need help," Race offered. He took a step back at the three faces that turned to him. Even seeing Quatre in the hotel had not prepared him for the military coldness of their expressions.

"Watch and learn," Wufei sniffed.

"You doing it, Cat?" Duo asked, dismissing the Quests as though they didn't exist.

"Yes. On my signal."

And Quatre tucked his gun into the waistband of his slacks and left the lighthouse. Hadji made to say something but a swift look from Wufei silenced him. Still, there was no denying their curiosity. A moment later, one of the monitors came up with the security feed from outside – fuzzy, but enough to make something of it.

"So you can watch," Heero said wryly. "And stop that dog, if you can." Jonny nodded and scooped up Bandit, trying to settle him.

Outside, Quatre seemed to be studying the ground, as if looking for footprints of some kind, turned partially away from where the intruders were. They crept closer and he never moved to intercept them. He even tipped his head so he was entirely blind to their position.

"What's he doing?" Race whispered fiercely. "They'll kill him and he isn't even keeping an eye out for them!" He looked up to demand an answer from one of the others, only to realize that Duo and Wufei were gone.

"Watch," Heero repeated.

Then a lot of things happened at once.

One of the invaders raised their automatic weapon and pointed it at Quatre. At the same instant, Quatre dove towards them, narrowly escaping the gunfire, and rolling past them and down the bank that sloped to the sea. As the seven black-clad men rose to follow him, a blur appeared on the scene. That blur became to distinct forms as Wufei and Duo began incapacitating them at a rapid pace. Duo seemed to be brawling with no weapons, but Wufei had his katana in his hands and was making good use of it. The fact that two young adults were not only holding their own but openly outperforming six obviously trained, hired professionals was more than a little impressive.

"Wait, where's..." was as far as Benton got before looking up in alarm.

The last of the seven attackers had broken off from the group and charged into the lighthouse. But a single shot from above rang out and he fell, his face a bloody ruin. Trowa dropped easily to the ground, showing a bit of his acrobatics as he did so, and took up a position at the door itself.

"All clear!" came Wufei's voice from outside.

"Zero Four?" Trowa spoke into his earpiece.

"Clear on the beach as well. No one stayed behind, and the boat is anchored a bit off shore, but it's a simple motorboat. No leads there. I'm heading back." There was a pause as he began to climb the embankment, then, "One of them is still conscious. And...GET DOWN!"

This last was a bellowed order so commanding everyone obeyed, and just in time to be braced for an explosion from outside. The smoke hadn't even yet gotten to the door of the lighthouse before Trowa was on his feet again, sprinting, Race at his heels.

"Status?" he asked as he came to a halt near the small rock behind which Wufei and Duo had taken shelter.

"Unharmed," Wufei said curtly. "Winner warned us in time."

"But where did it come from?" Race wanted to know.

"From them," Quatre answered, appearing over the ridge. He was slightly dusty from rolling around, but obviously unhurt. He pointed to where the six men had been in a pile. "One of them didn't get knocked totally out and activated some explosives in his vest."

"So we go from seven potential prisoners to interrogate to one," Wufei scowled. "Self-detonation implies a frightening amount of zeal for their cause."

"Don't let Heero hear you say that," Duo chuckled slightly, taking Quatre's hand when he offered it to pull him to his feet.

"Not one left, actually." They turned to Trowa who shrugged. "You know I hate tranqs."

"You killed him?" There was no accusation in Quatre's voice. Trowa nodded.

"So whatever we might have learned is gone," Heero appeared outside, the rest of the Quests behind him. "I've got something, though. And then, Quatre," he pinned the blond with a look, "no more stalling."

"Okay, can we rewind for a minute?" Jonny demanded, feeling ill. "There were seven guys just, what, hanging out on a boat waiting for us? And when they lost the fight against you they killed themselves? All but the one Trowa shot to save us?"

"Sounds like a pretty good summation, yeah," Jessie said, outwardly composed in spite of the carnage. "But why would they have been waiting for us?"

"Let's find out who they are and maybe that will answer that question," Benton answered. He was shaken and found himself putting an arm around Jonny as much for his own sake as his son's, meeting Hadji's eyes as well to ensure that his other son was all right. Jessie, too, was rather close to her father, who squeezed her shoulder. Race had killed men before to protect them all, but it was never easy.

"Stalling?" Hadji asked Trowa as they followed Heero back into the lighthouse. Wufei remained outside, calling the Preventers to report the incident and get a team to handle the bodies that remained.

"You'll see," he responded mysteriously.


	10. Reconnaissance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I almost forgot to get this out, but it's not technically Monday yet where I am, so I still made it during the weekend! I feel like it's a stinky place to leave it, so chapter 11 might be up as early as tomorrow just to keep things moving.
> 
> Don't own the boys (and Jessie) of either universe. I am borrowing them. And I am reusing a few from the Quest world for my own devices – not quite as they were originally imagined. But that's okay. Horus, though, is a concept of my own invention. If you wish to use it for further GW storytelling, please credit me.
> 
> Enjoy!

"So, here is where you can see what your security system caught before they shut it down," Heero pointed.

Given the now ugly circumstances of the lighthouse with the one dead attacker inside, the group had relocated to the house, finding that the library was more or less intact. Heero projected his laptop onto the screen that came down above the mantle for just this purpose and everyone found a seat to watch.

The video feed was somewhat degraded, as though it had been scrambled, and large swaths of it were pixelated beyond recognition. However, the images Heero had spliced together did manage to show a coherent picture. Several armed and masked individuals had approached the Quest compound from a small motorboat, dragging the boat ashore and making their way to the house. There were a few lost minutes as the perpetrators ransacked the house and destroyed many of the security devices, but because the lighthouse's systems were independent they could tell that the group had spent at least half an hour there before heading to the lab. After that, the first man in the door shot out the primary camera and the security feed was disabled a few minutes later.

"They actually cut most of your systems off from the internet by slicing the cords themselves, so it's no wonder you couldn't access it remotely last night," Heero added. "They also uploaded a virus to attempt to cover their tracks, but it was simplistic and unrefined. I have already purged it."

"Is that all we got?" Race asked. "That's not a lot to go on."

"Well, there was one more image, but it's still not enough," the young hacker said. He pulled up a shot obviously taken by one of the cameras mounted on the gate to the road. The image was time-stamped as just seconds before the whole system had been crashed and showed a van or truck of some kind approaching the compound.

"So they either brought in more people or were prepared to remove large amounts of your equipment and didn't," Wufei concluded. "Their timing was impeccable. They struck while the compound was empty, and also when most Preventers and other monitoring satellites were out of position."

"But this is less than useless!" Jessie exclaimed. "We can't see their faces, we can't tell where they came from or who they were, and we can't follow them!"

"Which is why you need to stop stalling me," Heero levied a near-death glare at Quatre, who flushed.

"All right, all right," he put up his hands in mock surrender. "I don't want to know how you even know about Horus. One of these days you're going to have to stop spying on me, Heero."

"What's Horus?" Jonny asked. At the blank looks, it was obvious that not only were the Quests clueless, but so was Duo.

"Horus is _supposed_ to be top-secret," Quatre sighed. "Known only to those on the project itself. So, me and my engineers, mostly. Well, and Trowa."

"The rule is he can't miss dinner two nights in a row without telling me why," his lover smirked.

"How does Wuffie-chan know, then?" Duo pouted.

"Maxwell, that's going too far…" But before he could follow through on his threat, a look on Heero's face arrested his interest. "And how do you know anyway, Yuy? Winner swore he didn't tell you."

"Of course he didn't. But a project of that size being shared between WEI and the Preventers organization is enough to draw my attention. Quatre knows better than to assume I haven't seen anything on his computers." There was the tiniest hint of a satisfied smile on Heero's face, but only for a flicker of a moment.

"And you didn't tell me?" Duo turned to his best friend, who shrugged awkwardly.

"I wouldn't have told Trowa except he threatened to call Rashid and purge my schedule. I had to tell Wufei because he's the Preventers liaison on the project. I didn't tell Heero but he hacked into my _highly encrypted work computer_ and found out for himself. I had to keep my promise for secrecy _somewhere_ , didn't I?" he said with great exasperation.

"Anyway, the point is that Horus is a network of satellites belonging to WEI that will help us speed up our investigation as soon as Quatre gives me the access codes," Heero said.

"Why do you need him to give you the codes?" Hadji asked. "It sounds as though you could simply hack the system directly, if what you say is to be believed."

"Horus is too dangerous to be so easily compromised," Wufei answered. "It was Quatre's idea to ensure its security."

"Horus is, to all casual observation, nothing more than a test satellite network," Quatre explained. "It looks and functions like any communications net between the Earth and the colonies. In reality, however, it is the most advanced satellite and surveillance system ever designed. Horus has no blind spots anywhere on Earth or in space out almost to Mars. The resolution on the surveillance is ten-to-twenty times what you'll get from even the best equipment today, and it can be controlled remotely via the use of specific access codes. The downside is that, to ensure Horus wasn't used wrongly, the code must be entered correctly the very first time. If anyone or any system attempts to access the Horus mainframe without the correct code, the processors in every single individual Horus unit will simultaneously self-destruct."

"Isn't that a little harsh?" Jonny asked. "What if you type the password wrong?"

"You don't," Heero said. "Which is why I haven't tried it."

"Thanks for that," Quatre said a little wearily, "because we've had it mis-keyed by authorized personnel twice since the project began and you wouldn't believe what it costs to go out and fix every single node in Horus's network. Especially because of the Fallback Protocol."

"What's that?" Jessie found herself asking.

"If Horus were ever to be breached, the sheer power it would give whoever was using it cannot be estimated," he answered. "Preventers have it because I gave it to them, but really Horus is mine and nobody else's, and I'm keeping it as my own ace in the hole for peace, as it were. The Fallback Protocol states that no one person other than myself can ever know the locations of all the nodes or satellites or installations that house Horus. Even Wufei, who knows pretty much everything else, doesn't know where to find all of them. If Horus were ever hacked and went down, there's one node only I can locate and repair. And none of the others will come back online until I do so."

"So therefore," Hadji nodded, "even if someone did manage to find Horus at all, if they triggered its self-destruct, no one else could get it up and running again without your specific input and assistance. In essence, it has a dead-man's switch that only you can control."

"It tells you how much Une likes Winner over there that she let him get away with that little trick," Wufei rolled his eyes. "Anybody else and she'd have confiscated the whole project."

"Which is also why I didn't tell her about it until it was finished," he replied with a superior air.

"So, anyway, this system will allow you to see what our cameras missed," Dr Quest said.

"Not only that," Wufei put in. "Horus will allow us to track those who breached your system wherever they go."

"So let's do it!" Duo was enthusiastic. "Of course, now I'm never going outside in the buff again in case you and your suits are watching…" He leered outrageously and Quatre's face went bright pink.

That lasted for just a few seconds before Duo was inexplicably pelted with flying pillows. All eyes turned to where Trowa was primly sitting on a sofa by himself, without a single cushion anywhere in reach. But no one had seen him move and he returned their gazes with an even look.

"All right. I really am going to have to ask you not to watch," Quatre said, as he pulled out his own laptop. He typed furiously into it for a few seconds, then submitted an eye to the optical scanner, a finger to the fingerprint scanner, and did a voice-print check. There was a pause, and then he laboriously typed something ridiculously long and complex, given the number of digits and the careful slowness with which he inputted them. A moment later, he leaned back, relieved.

"Okay, let's see what we can see."

Wufei joined him and they began navigating the program. From the outside, it was alternately boring and entertaining to fixate on the wrong side of a laptop screen and listen to them work their way through the system, half-bickering as they did so. In the end, Heero simply attached Quatre's laptop to the projector so they could all watch the proceedings. There appeared to be an unsettling number of angles and views of the Quest compound from the air, and in many of them the black-clad men were clear, but additional resolution of the images seemed to offer few if any clues. It wasn't as if the perpetrators had worn helpful insignia on their clothing.

"That one," Duo spoke up suddenly from where he had arranged the dozen or so pillows around him into a very comfy-looking nest. But he was sitting up and staring fixedly at the images that flashed by. Quatre glanced to his friend and without another word magnified the view from the particular satellite that had caught Duo's attention.

"Second quadrant," Trowa clarified, also staring at the screen.

"I see it too," Benton put in. "Try 400 percent magnification, if it can do that."

"Dr Quest, Horus can do ten-thousand percent magnification from here. Easily." There was unmistakable pride in Quatre's voice.

As he zoomed in on the image, it became obvious what they were seeing. Sitting in the back of the covered truck that pulled up to the gates of the Quest compound was a man dressed just like all the others. But what made him unique was that he was holding a computer in his hands and the screen was just visible. On it was an image that, as Quatre increased the resolution, caused even the war-hardened ex-Gundam pilots to draw back in revulsion.

"How very… _Phantom of the Opera_ ," Race managed to quip after a moment.

"Trowa, you're the best at facial recognition," Heero said. "Can you identify him?"

Trowa moved smoothly to the computer and began isolating various features on the visage before them with practiced ease. He worked from seemingly strange facial markers as well as the common eyes and mouth structure. With the face half-covered by a mask, there was a great deal that was not visible, but Trowa focused on the chin and the jawline and estimated some cheekbones as well. The fact that the visible flesh beneath the mask was scarred and rather horrifying didn't seem to trouble him.

"While you do that, I'll track the location of our friends," Wufei said lightly. He ran a line from Quatre's laptop to his own and began utilizing Horus to monitor the men and their truck as they left the Quest compound. Since staring at the face on the projector was somewhat disconcerting, he found himself with an audience as he switched from satellite to satellite, tracking their movements. He didn't bother with the individuals who retreated back to the boat they'd landed at the start – they ended up meeting up with the truck not far from the compound anyway. And the truck bypassed the nearest obvious transportation hubs and drove for close to 4 hours before at last unloading its passengers.

"Spaceport," Wufei announced.

"They'd have taken probably a private transport," Duo considered, "since they had planned on possibly walking away with some equipment. Therefore, their earliest takeoff window would have had to have been about two hours after they arrived at the port."

"How can you possibly know that?" Jonny asked. "If it was a private transport, they could take off whenever they were all onboard whatever shuttle they had."

"Not true," the braided young man grinned. "Even private transports have to wait if there are other shuttles scheduled to take off. There are only so many launch pads at each port. The one Wufei is looking at was pretty booked yesterday with the first availability for a private transport about two hours after they arrived, like I said."

At the blank looks, Duo grinned even wider.

"During the war, I got bored one day and decided to memorize the Bradshaw. It turned out to be really useful, so I got into the habit of doing it once a month ever since."

"The Bradshaw?"

"It's the timetables schedule of all worldwide spaceports," Jessie explained. "It's a massive chart that shows all planned takeoffs and landings to and from outer space." She elbowed Duo with a grin. "That thing is near impossible to understand. I'm impressed."

"Hidden depths, Red. Hidden depths." He leaned back with a smile.

"Got him," Trowa put in. On the screen, the scarred and mangled masked face from the Horus feed had been overlaid onto a service record. All the markers Trowa had highlighted were a perfect match, assuming the person in question had been horrifically burned or otherwise mutilated in the meantime.

"Agent Ezekiel Rage," Race read. "One of OZ's top spies sent to infiltrate White Fang. Presumed killed in action."

"The service record is half blank," Dr Quest pointed out. "Even his real name has been removed from the file. Since he obviously wasn't killed, what could have happened to him that OZ would try so hard to hide?"

"Give me a couple of hours and I'll be able to tell you," Heero said.

"I could just requisition the information through official channels," Wufei raised his eyebrow.

"That will take days," Heero replied blandly. "I'm much faster."

"He's got you there," Quatre said cheerfully. "So, Wufei, where did our private shuttle go after it took off from the port?"

"Horus tracked it to an abandoned mining installation not far from L2. It's not part of the colony cluster anymore and as far as I can tell nobody uses it for anything," the Preventers agent reported. "Perfect for an underground terrorist base."

"Then that's where we'll find some answers," Jonny said decisively.

"Are you advocating our invading this location ourselves?" Hadji asked, knowing the answer all too well.

"Of course! They're going to do that anyway. Remember, Quatre said that they were the ones Preventers was sending to deal with this. That's why we're here instead of in a safehouse somewhere. Now that we know where the terrorists are, there's no way they won't be going out there themselves."

"You're not wrong, J-man," Duo said. "These guys blew up a hotel and tried to shoot at Cat. We don't usually let people do that without at least dropping by for tea."

"But you're still civilians," Wufei pointed out. "Even if you have clearance for the information you possess, that doesn't mean I have to allow you on the mission. It will be risky." But, even though he still spoke of "civilians" as though they were slime on his favorite sword, there was a challenging light in his eyes.

"These people threatened my family, broke into my home, and are likely attempting to use my research to start a new war," Dr Quest's voice rang with conviction. "You will not keep me from doing whatever it takes to stop them."

"It's going to be dangerous," and there was something solemn in Quatre's voice, almost mournful.

"We might not be Gundam pilots," Race met the blond's eyes, "but that doesn't mean we can't help you. You don't know how many of them there are. Even you can't be everywhere."

"Trust us," Jessie said suddenly. "The truth is that you can't give us anything more dangerous than what you already have. We'll be a lot less of a risk to you on this mission than we ever will be in knowing who you are."

"Perfectly sound reasoning," Trowa nodded to himself. "She's got us there. No matter how good or bad they are, they can't cause anything worse on a mission than they can just by making our identities known to the public." His eyes didn't even flit to Quatre, but the meaning was clear nonetheless.

"Quatre," Hadji focused on his friend, "you would not have shared what you did with me did you not believe it would be of value. You do not need to know _why_ you need us for it to be true."

"That's fair," he replied.

"Two conditions," and Heero's voice brokered less than no argument. "One – you will take all your orders from us without question. If you are a risk to the mission and you are ordered to stand down or retreat, you will do so or I will kill you where you stand."

"Yeah, 'cause that makes me feel better," Jonny snorted. Duo grinned at him.

"And two – the dog does not come with us."

All eyes turned to Bandit, who yipped once and rolled over at being the center of attention, wriggling contentedly.

"How come?" Jessie asked.

There was a moment of silence and then laughter exploded out of Quatre so loudly and suddenly and brightly it could have been a sneeze. He laughed and laughed, eventually having to sit and bury his face in his hands while his shoulders shook. Trowa, Duo, and Wufei all looked at him for only a moment before their gazes shifted to Heero. Hadji, knowing that whatever had amused Quatre must have come from the Japanese man, also turned in confusion. The rest of the Quests, not privy to the knowledge of Quatre's empathy however, stared at him instead.

"Quatre…" Heero growled warningly.

"I know…I'm sorry," he gasped. "It's just…I can't help it…" And he dissolved into giggles again.

But Trowa seemed to understand and moved forward. He lifted Bandit into his arms, cradling him expertly and scratching behind his ears. There was affection in his face, unfamiliar to the Quests who had known him so little, but the others recognized the expression from his time in the circus. Trowa loved few things in life – Quatre being the most important of them – but animals always held a place in his heart.

Without warning, Trowa pivoted to where Heero sat glaring murder at Quatre and placed the dog in his lap.

Heero froze, his body becoming as rigid as the chair. Bandit, however, had no hesitation at all and padded around in a circle twice before settling in comfortably. He stretched his nose to Heero's elbow and gave it an experimental lick. The stoic young man jolted as though shocked and Bandit repeated the action. He wuffled softly and turned a beseeching face to Heero's wide eyes.

The mask cracked and Heero smiled. His face took on a light that made him look years younger as he wrapped one arm around the small dog and began stroking its head with his other hand. It was almost precisely the look Jonny wore when he cuddled his best canine friend, and it made Heero's usual cold warrior face seem out of place.

It was perfectly quiet for a moment, and Race found himself looking at Duo. He'd have expected the jokester of the five to have called out Heero for his apparent affection for the pup, but Duo was strangely silent, his own face unreadable. Race looked to Trowa, who had retreated and sat with an arm around Quatre, the latter of whom was quieted at last and smiling gently. Even Wufei's granite justice-and-business-only face had softened. And Race realized that somehow he had missed something important. Important enough that it had earned silence where he would have expected something else.

But the moment passed and Heero, still hugging Bandit, looked up with a glower that could have forced waterfalls to run backwards. There was challenge and shame and pride and burning defiance in that glare, and Race understood.

"It isn't that he doesn't like Bandit. He likes him too much," he realized. He fought a smile of his own. Still so human and young, these boys, for whatever else they might have become.

"Bandit has been helpful more than once," Benton said smoothly, trading a knowing look with his bodyguard; he had come to the same conclusion. "If you don't want him on the mission, that's fine, but he does terribly when we leave him behind in general. If he can at least join us in space, that will probably be enough. Can we keep him with us when we go to L2?"

Nobody looked at Heero, not even Jonny and Jessie and Hadji who were at the least curious if not openly near-bouncing to ask their questions, Hadji being the former, Jonny the latter, and Jessie somewhere in between. Heero pet Bandit again, earning a joyful bark in return. When he spoke, it was to nobody but the pup in his arms.

" _Hai_."

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Um, not to sound stupid," Jessie asked, settling into her seat, "but why are we taking the Strataquest?"

"The Preventers shuttles are too noticeable," Wufei answered. "There's no quicker way of announcing to our enemy that we are coming than to use one of the official transports."

"Yeah, but isn't this screaming for them to come get us?" Jonny wanted to know. "I mean, they were after dad in the first place. The Strataquest doesn't say 'property of the Quest family' on the side, but it's still a pretty distinctive craft."

"Good." Duo grinned. "If they come out of their holes to greet us, all the easier for us to hunt them down."

"We're not going into the mining installation in the Strata anyway," Race added. "We'll dock at L2 and take something local."

"Yes, but…" Jessie trailed off.

"If we wait for a public shuttle, not only will we have to deal with lines and officials and paperwork and everything else," Quatre said, "but we'll tip off anyone looking for a trail that proves there are Preventers following them. If we take a WEI shuttle, no matter how careful we are, we'll be met when we arrive with photographers. If we take a Preventers shuttle, it is just as Wufei says. And I don't have a private unmarked shuttle on this continent right now." He smiled. "Our adversaries must assume Preventers is tracking them, but they will think they've got more time before the official channels get things sorted. And they'd be fools not to think you yourselves would be following them after what happened at the hotel. The reputation of the Quests is well enough known. By feeding them that through the use of your shuttle, it means that we," and he gestured to himself and the other ex-pilots "go totally unnoticed."

"That's remarkably clever," Dr Quest said, settling into the copilot's seat.

"You have no idea," Wufei smirked. "Maybe if you're lucky you'll see what kind of strategist Winner really is."

"That's not what I'd call lucky, Fei-boy." Duo dodged past Wufei's seat with alacrity and chose the one farthest from the seething agent.

"MAXWELL!"

"So that's also why you're letting me pilot," Race mused, doing his final checks. "Since it'll be me talking to the control room at L2, nobody will even know the five of you are here."

Everyone had settled and Race was already moving the Strataquest into position to take off from the spaceport when Heero next spoke.

"Trust that if there is a way to pass unnoticed into a colony, Quatre and Trowa have found it," Heero commented. "Between Quatre's admirers and Trowa's reticence, they have learned many ways to get in and out without drawing attention to themselves."

Quatre and Trowa exchanged sly grins. Then, as the shuttle began its takeoff, Trowa reached out and took Quatre's hand. The blond, who had turned to stare out the window intently, closed his eyes and squeezed back. The exchange had the weight of familiarity to it, and of need.

Inside their bond, Trowa knew perfectly well what Quatre was feeling. Leaving the Earth or landing on it always had the same impact on his beloved, and from what Quatre had told him of his conversations with Wufei, it was to be expected. The Earth had a strong influence on Quatre's empathy, dulling its ability to reach those in space, and somewhat muting it with so much life everywhere – not that Quatre could sense the emotions of trees and flowers, but he did have a certain affinity for animals and their hearts. Passing from the Earth into space was always difficult for Quatre. Not only was he breaking from the dampening effect on his space heart, but he was also moving towards greater centers of population, given that 80% of people lived in space these days.

As they rushed through the atmosphere and broke from the Earth, the blue sky melting away into star-spangled darkness, Quatre's breath hitched. Through their bond, Trowa felt the momentary alarm at the much clearer feelings, the deeper layers, the multitude of souls that, even though hours away by the fastest shuttle, could echo this far. Quatre liked both space and the Earth, and he had accustomed himself to them separately, but moving from one to the other was always at least momentarily overwhelming.

Trowa anchored Quatre, gave him a steady set of emotions to hold onto, and waited. After a few minutes of what must have been extreme sensory chaos in Quatre's mind, his space heart adjusted and he began to block out the much brighter influences leaking into him. Like the defenses in his Gundam, he recalibrated his shields until they would hold against the particular threat before him. After a while, Quatre let all his breath out in a relieved whoosh and his heart beat only with contentment across their bond.

Not long after Quatre had settled, he got a call from his assistant at WEI and retreated to take it. The Strataquest, like the jet they had taken to reach the compound, had multiple sections to allow for a bit of privacy. The Quests were no strangers to space, and the private shuttle was almost as fancy as Quatre's, complete with barracks-style sleeping accommodations and some basic food supplies. While Quatre retreated to an aft section, Jonny, Hadji, and Jessie all unbuckled themselves.

"So, we've got, what, three hours before we reach L2?" Jessie asked.

"Approximately," Wufei answered, looking at the three curiously.

"Come on, boy," Jonny opened the latch on the carrier that was Bandit's safety-harness on the shuttle and the pup sprang out, doing a happy half-trot, half-swim to carry himself through the gravity-less shuttle. He bumped into Duo's legs, pushed himself off, and ended up floating towards the seats up front where Benton and Race were piloting.

"Keep him back there," warned Benton. "The last time he got up here we wound up narrowly missing the debris field when he bumped the navigation panel."

"Got it, Dr Quest," Jessie said, lightly bouncing through the cabin to catch Bandit before his trajectory carried him too far.

"So, are we up for the usual?" Jonny asked.

"Not me," Hadji deferred. "But please include our new friends in your game. This I would like to see."

"Game?" Duo's eyes lit up.

"When Jonny was much younger," Race said from up front, "he used to get very bored on long space flights. So he and Hadji came up with a game to pass the time. It also happened to be good for acclimating them to lower gravity."

"It's sort of a cross between volleyball and lacrosse," Jonny explained, digging through one of the compartments until he came up with an orange box. "We set up these goals and you have to get the ball in your opponent's net. But you can't cross the center line to do it."

"If we're going to do teams," Jessie pointed out, "it'll be more fair if Jonny and I are on opposite sides. We know the game, and, also, you guys are something else."

"That's sensible," Wufei admitted, "but unnecessary. This is foolish."

"You're just afraid you'll get your honor handed to you in itty-bitty pieces," Duo boasted. "If I challenge you, will you play?"

"Maxwell, if you challenge me, I will be forced to defeat you _soundly_ ," Wufei almost growled.

"Then what are the teams?" Jonny asked.

"Jessie, Duo, and myself," Trowa said, "against Heero, Wufei, and Jonny."

"Well balanced," Heero nodded. "I would call this a waste of time, but my computer's programs are still hacking the old OZ data. At least this will be an interesting means to see if you are better at this little sport than you are at basketball," and he made the tiniest of smirks at Duo who nearly choked on his tongue.

"Why you…?! I'm _so_ better than you! Bring it on, Hee-chan!"

"If you don't mind," came Race's voice, "we'll close off the cockpit so we don't get any surprises up here." He laughed as he said it and the folding partition slid to life along the tracks in the floor to box in the main cabin.

Jonny and Jessie outlined the rules, the center boundary, and what constituted a fair steal from across the line while setting up the goals at either end. With five pairs of side-by-side chairs each in the cabin, there were obstacles to be avoided as well as teammates to work with. Wufei might have grumbled, but every time his superiority came out, Duo would egg him into reaffirming his challenge. Trowa would have seemed completely neutral to the whole idea except for the bright glint in his eyes.

"I think I'll take Bandit and leave you to it," Hadji commented. "It's not going to be very safe for spectators, you realize."

"Hadj, are you sure?" Jonny asked, drawing near and leaning his head close. "You don't have to…"

"My friend," his voice was warm, "I am not interested, as I plainly stated. I am not left out if I choose to excuse myself. No worries. Besides, if Quatre decides he wishes to join in, then I shall as well to keep him company in the sea of you literal types." Here he smiled genuinely.

"If Cat wants to play, he's on my team!" Duo claimed.

"I'll be sure to tell him so," Hadji laughed. He scooped up Bandit and made his way to the door, hiding a snigger at the increasingly heated talk passing between the teams. It was playful banter for Jonny and Jessie, and it would have sounded like a to-the-death duel for Wufei and Heero and Duo, and Trowa didn't say anything, of course, but even he could tell it came from the same emotion. War-hardened or not, the six of them were all indulging their competitive streaks in a mostly-harmless fashion, and it was probably as good a way as any to build cohesion between them.

And if Hadji was any judge of these things, they would need that cohesion and soon.


	11. Prep Work

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Couldn't wait another day to get this ball rolling. It's exciting for me to get the real meat of this story off my laptop and out into the world. But I'll try and keep the next update for the weekend.
> 
> One note – sometimes I pay homage to other series with my references. There's a few in this chapter and one or two in previous. Most of those have to do with some incarnation of Sherlock Holmes (the stuff in this chapter specifically the BBC's Sherlock, whereas last chapter's "Bradshaw" is from a particular more classical series). But this time I'm also doing a direct one – Quatre is allergic to something because I am horridly allergic. So there ha.
> 
> But that's the extent to which I own the Gundam characters, the Quest characters, or even the insinuations of Sherlock Holmes. Otherwise this story would be real!
> 
> Enjoy!

Quatre finally cleared all the various tasks that needed his attention and ended his call with his assistant. Rising from the small chair in the quiet space, he was not at all surprised to see Bandit curled up and asleep against the knee of Hadji, who appeared to be meditating. Quatre hadn't needed to turn around to know when they'd joined him, nor did he need to ask why given the audible shouting and the raucous excitement and competitiveness and triumph radiating from the forward cabin.

"All is well then?" Hadji asked politely, opening his eyes.

"Yes. Really they don't need me every day. I just worry," Quatre sat on one of the bunks and drew his feet under him. "WEI is more than a company. And it's more than a livelihood for a lot of people. It's also the legacy of my father, and I am doing my best to ensure it's what it should be."

"A heavy burden, but one I imagine you are well suited to bear," Hadji smiled. He didn't move from his position, but he did clear his throat. "I meant to ask something about last night, if you aren't bothered..." he began.

"Hadji, you have read the inside of my soul _and_ you now know I was a Gundam pilot. I think you can ask me whatever you want. You know I won't answer if I can't, but there's less I would keep from you than before." Quatre's voice was warm and there was amusement in his face.

"Very well. When we met Heero in the corridor, why did he call you 'Katoru' instead of Quatre?"

"They all do that, did you notice?" he smiled. "Duo calls me 'Cat' more often than anything else, and Wufei calls us all by our surnames unless he's particularly upset. Trowa's the only one who always uses proper names."

"Yes, but why?"

"In the war," Quatre's voice was soft, "we were numbers. Zero One. Zero Two. Zero Three. Zero Four. Zero Five. And of the five of us, only two of us have names of our own, names given by parents we remember. When peace came and we became friends, we put the numbers aside, to be used only on missions or when we needed conceal our identities from others."

"I can understand that. But Heero...?"

"Heero's native language is Japanese," Quatre continued. "It's...it's his way of giving me a name that links me to him, a name that's a part of his heritage. Mine isn't easy to pronounce in Japanese, and when we speak it to one another, it's what started coming out."

"But he doesn't do that with the others."

"Not exactly. But he does call us all _baka_ when we deserve it. And you've heard Duo call him 'Hee-chan' in a similar way."

"I guess I'd understand it if he had a nickname for everyone, but it's just you." Hadji knew he was prying, but he also trusted that Quatre would forgive him.

"Do you speak Japanese?" At Hadji's shaking head, Quatre continued, "It's an interesting language. One of its features, unlike Common, is that you always refer to the people around you based on their relationship to you – it depends on if they are older or younger, more respected or less, strangers or family. Heero instinctively assesses people and treats them accordingly, just like his language. And what I am to Heero is unique. It matters to him that I am distinct. But he doesn't like to admit it. He only ever calls me Katoru when under the influence of strong emotions."

"Hmm." That was unexpectedly private, and Hadji considered it for a moment. "He won't mind that you've told me this, will he?"

"Heero? No, I don't think so. Or, well maybe he will," Quatre corrected himself. "He's very circumspect about his feelings, you know. He might actually hate for me to have told you that." He had the grace to look a little abashed.

"Should I be concerned?" Hadji asked archly, only mostly joking.

"No, I don't think so. Especially since I won't tell him I've told you. And I imagine you won't mention it either!"

"An excellent plan." The relieved smile that warmed Hadji's face was mirrored on Quatre's, and both grew more impish at a particularly loud cry from the cabin afore them. Duo was being very noisy, and Jonny was not much quieter.

"They're doing it on purpose," Quatre pointed out.

"Yes, I know. It does not take an empath to recognize that they wish us to join them," Hadji shook his head. "But three on a team is already a bit crowded. I fear four will put someone's elbow through a window."

"Structurally impossible," Quatre responded automatically, then laughed as he recognized he'd been teased.

"If you do not wish to join them, we could meditate again," he offered.

"Thank you. But no. I promised Trowa and Heero I'd warn them before doing that again, since it upset them so much the first time. However," and an eager light glowed in his blue eyes, "I'm not averse to joining them. Even crowded, it will be an interesting game."

"Oh?"

The light grew brighter and Quatre's face transformed. The open, kind-hearted friend was replaced with a shark, but not the kind that dealt in numbers and papers. As the expression grew, there was a shout from beyond, and then a sudden silence. A moment later, Trowa peeked his head in.

"We've just called it a draw." He stated it almost flatly, but it was still an obvious invitation. Quatre schooled his face and rose, beckoning to Hadji to follow.

"Yeah! Come on, Cat!" Duo cheered.

"Winner is an unfair advantage to either team," Wufei pointed out.

"Hey, what about Hadji?" Jessie demanded.

"Oh, no," Hadji put up his hands as he and Quatre entered the cabin. "No, do not put me in the same category. I know better."

"How about a challenge, then?" Quatre suggested, his voice almost coolly casual. "I have an idea."

"What do you have in mind?" Trowa asked.

"Teams of four. But, to keep it interesting, I'll join a team with these three," and he gestured to Jessie, Jonny, and Hadji. "You four against us."

"Oh man! Not even you can pull that off!" Duo laughed. "No offense, Red, you're good, and J-man has a few moves and all, but _nobody_ can beat the Gundam team."

"If anybody can, though, it's Quatre." Heero was allowing himself to float, and came to a rest against a seat. "It's an interesting idea."

"Come on," Jessie teased, looking at Wufei. "You can't tell me you're afraid to lose to a bunch of kids and a _girl_ , are you?"

"Woman, you will regret that," he threatened. But those who knew him well, which increasingly included Jonny, Jessie, and Hadji, saw beneath the legitimate fire of his honor insulted was a wry humor. "The first team to five points is the victor. There will be no tie."

"Give me a minute with my team," Quatre said politely, floating across the cabin and gesturing for the others to join him. As they huddled together, Duo turned to his teammates.

"So, we got a chance?"

"Hard to say," Trowa commented. "Quatre's shutting me out, so he's got something in mind. But none of them are a match for our skills." He moved off to dig into the bags he and Quatre had brought with them for something.

"Usually that's when Quatre takes advantage of an enemy, though. Do not underestimate him," Heero reminded them.

"Oh, I won't," Duo cracked his knuckles.

Several minutes later, Quatre rose. But before anyone could say anything, a small item flew through the space. The blond caught it instinctively.

"They're not Maganacs," he argued, shaking his head at the goggles resting on his palm.

"They're close enough," Trowa argued. "You're leading your troops this time. Rashid will be disappointed if you do it improperly."

"What?" Jessie asked.

"Maybe we'll get into it later," Quatre said. Then he grinned brightly and pulled the goggles onto his head, snapping them into place with habitual ease and pride. "All right. Let's do this. Duo – you start with the ball. All the rules are otherwise the same. Wufei said to five points? We're ready when you are!"

Duo gathered the ball from where it had been floating. In the cylindrical space, the two goals were weighed down to the floor and about the size of one of the shuttle seats. The ball was slightly smaller than a basketball, easy to palm and soft and bouncy. The space was divided laterally at the middle row of seats so that neither team could cross the boundary. In the previous game, Trowa and Wufei had served as goalies while their other teammates were attackers, catching and blocking throws and shooting at the goal.

As the current teams spread across the field, more than one ex-Gundam eyebrow was raised when Quatre stayed back as goalie himself. That was placing a lot of faith in the Quests, they thought. Smirking, Trowa assumed a similar position at the other end, leaving Heero against Hadji, Duo against Jonny, and Wufei against Jessie in the center.

"Nice knowing you three," Duo commented.

The game began with a hard toss from Duo, which sailed past the Quests, but Quatre caught it easily. The opposing team prepared for Quatre to take his shot, but instead he lobbed it to Jessie.

"Green five," he said.

As though that meant something, Jessie nodded sharply. Then she pushed off a chair, driving straight for the dividing line. Wufei moved to intercept her – he couldn't touch her, but he could certainly be ready to pluck the ball from her fingers when she got close enough to the line. At the last minute, though, Jonny appeared from the side and caught her by the knees. He swung her almost like a baseball bat and she released the ball at the arc of the swing. Even Trowa's ridiculous reflexes couldn't cope with the crazily-spinning ball and a goal was scored.

"Yes!" Jonny cheered.

"Okay, Barton. You're out. I'll handle this," Wufei grumbled, switching places.

"If I know Quatre, that's exactly what he wants," Heero said, but no one paid any attention.

Trowa had the ball now, and he passed it to Heero who flicked it hard into the opposite territory. Several volleys followed where neither team could quite control the ball as missed shots tended to go off at odd angles. Once it even slipped through and nearly scored except that Jonny somehow flung himself behind Quatre to save it. He picked it up and offered it to Quatre, who shook his head.

"Yellow seven, please." And he grinned.

Jonny grinned back and tucked the ball under his arm. He made a running start, but instead of charging the line as Jessie had done, he pushed himself to the ceiling and planted himself upside down. He threw the ball hard for the goal, but Duo easily blocked it, knocking it away dismissively. Which meant that he, unfortunately, had failed to notice Hadji concealing himself behind one of the shuttle's seats. Hadji lashed out with a sharp kick and the ball bounced off one of the windows and into the goal at a steep angle.

"Good shot!" Jessie tossed her hair. "Two to nothing!" she taunted.

"This is pointless," Heero said. "We'll never beat Quatre."

"How can you say that?" Duo demanded. "I know he's good, but...oh."

"You forgot," Wufei rolled his eyes.

" _Baka_ ," Heero shook his head.

"Forgot what?" Jonny turned to his team "captain."

"These goggles," he said, lifting them up to rest them on his forehead. "They're mine because I'm the nominal commander of the Maganacs. Rashid really runs things. But in battle they follow me."

"The Maganacs...Jess, weren't those the guys that...?" Jonny began.

"They didn't have equipment to rival either OZ or White Fang or Romefeller, but they were unstoppable. Never lost a single suit in battle. They always managed to be where they were needed, and they could overpower a force several times their size."

Quatre shrugged. "Finding the holes in the enemy plan or the defensive line or the assets of your opponent has always come easily to me."

"So they're right. They won't beat us," Hadji concluded.

"I wouldn't say that. They have very, very good skills and impeccable teamwork," Quatre replied.

"But we're reactive," Trowa said. "You aren't."

"Well, yes."

"I said we'd play to five," Wufei said staunchly. "To surrender before that point is dishonorable."

"Fighting a losing battle is also illogical," Heero pointed out.

"Oh, come on! Besides, when was the last time any of us actually went up against Cat? Don't you want to know if we can beat him?" Duo spread his arms wide. "Come on!"

"We could offer to go easy on you," Jessie said archly. The death-glares she got from both Heero and Wufei caused her to turn red with repressed giggling.

"The best you've got, then," Hadji said, taking up a position to Quatre's right. "And we shall do the same."

In the end, it really wasn't an exactly fair game. Though Quatre's team did not have a perfect match – they had to leave their goal unprotected once or twice to make one of Quatre's crazy strategies work and Heero and Trowa both made use of those opportunities – they did win in the end. It was an amazing thing to see from both sides. On one half of the "field," the ex-Gundam pilots were poetry in motion. They were flexible, strong, coordinated. One could pass without even needing to look and they would know who would be there to catch the pass and what they would do with it. It was the grace of a kata and the prowess as if this were a sport all four had played their whole lives.

But on the other side, Quatre's team was something else. Jessie and Jonny and Hadji were not the consummate athletes that their opponents were, but they did know how to work together. They trusted one another, so as in the move where Jessie had become a tool for Jonny, they could work as a greater unit than the four Gundams who were still individuals fighting their own battles most of the time. Quatre called out commands based on colors and numbers that only the Quests understood, and each seemed to refer to something specifically designed to play on a weakness the blond had already identified would be present in his friends. Jonny and Jessie and Hadji could not have beaten even three of the Gundams head-on, but with Quatre to advise them, they couldn't lose to the full four.

At the end of the game, everyone was exhausted. Quatre would take no congratulations from anyone, instead always turning their words into compliments of his team and also of the strengths of his friends. He settled down to lounge on the floor between seats, looking rather pleased with himself, it must be confessed, and when Trowa sat beside him, leaned his head on Trowa's sharp shoulder. Their bond spoke of contentment and pleasure and pride, and they both smiled in it. Duo and Jonny got into a match of insults and Jessie worked her way under Wufei's skin, and Hadji was happy to intercede where he felt a friend needed him, and Heero went back to his laptop, and the cabin had changed.

Somehow, playing on opposite teams had brought them together.

And from the cockpit, with a camera to watch the goings-on and the voices clearly leaking through the partition, Benton and Race exchanged looks of their own. Eight kids, all under the age of twenty, all remarkable, and finally the lines drawn between them were starting to blur.

 

-==OOO==-

 

The arrival on L2 was extremely anti-climactic. Though well-renowned in certain circles, Dr Quest's name was not one that generated a corps of people from the press gawking outside the docking bay. And no one knew Quatre Raberba Winner was on-board, so there was no one to follow and annoy them upon disembarking. Which was exactly what they had hoped for.

"It's like I was just here," Duo commented. "Oh, wait, I was!"

"What now?" Jonny asked. "Are we going to head out, you know, _there_ tonight?"

"First we need some dinner," Race said, adjusting the strap of his military-grade duffel bag. "Lunch at the spaceport doesn't count as real food."

"We also need to discuss what my investigations have uncovered," Heero put in. "And we need a plan."

"Maxwell, can your Sweeper friends arrange some transportation for us? Something that will not be traceable?" Wufei asked.

"Count on it," he nodded. "Non-traceable is what we do best!" He dug into his pockets for his own phone and began sending a message. The advantage of having L2 as a base of operations was that no one looked too closely at those who came and went, or what they brought with them. It wasn't the first time the Sweepers had made use of the local authority's willingness to look the other way, and the ex-pilots had been well-served by it as well. Only in cases like this, with terrorists in the game, was it less of an advantage because they, too, could pass unmolested.

"Good. Yuy can probably get us a certain about of visibility to the interior through the security system, but I'll put in a call to Une to see about actual blueprints for the place. Preventers has all colonies and clusters on file in case of terrorist attack," Wufei said. "Shouldn't be hard to get."

"Then let's find a quiet place for dinner while we compile our information, and we can then decide when we are ready to move forward," Dr Quest suggested.

"So where do they have good food?" Jessie wanted to know. Bandit yipped beside her, eager for his dinner as well.

"We might have an idea about that," Quatre suggested. "I won't claim to know L2 the way Duo does, but we've been here on business. Trowa, what do you think?"

"Angelo's. Definitely." He nodded firmly.

"Trowa's a foodie," Duo said in a mock-whisper. "Pickiest eater alive. But he has good taste – Angelo's is top of the foodchain."

"Well, that's all right then," Hadji replied, "since it means we'll get the best!"

And that was no mean joke, but a certainty. Duo led the group unerringly through a dozen separate back ways that kept them away from the crowds and the cameras. Everyone had packed light – a backpack each if that, though in the case of the pilots those bags were primarily loaded with weapons rather than clothing or other "necessities." One largeish bag they had carried between them had disappeared at the spaceport, and the Quests didn't know what the others had done with it but knew better than to ask. After a twisting route and even descending off the sidewalks and walking through what could only be a maintenance corridor (that was probably off-limits but when had that stopped Duo?) they emerged blinking in front of an understated storefront Italian restaurant.

"Signor Quattro! Signor Tre!" the rounded proprietor greeted them enthusiastically. "It has been too long! And so many friends you bring me!"

"Good evening, Angelo," Quatre said politely, taking the man's hand and squeezing it warmly. "Could we trouble you for a private room where we can be undisturbed?"

"Of course, of course. For you, anything." He began to turn away when something caught his eye and he looked back.

"Hey Angie," Duo ducked his head, his bangs hiding much of his face.

"Why that no-good scoundrel! Duo! How dare you show your face here!" Angelo stalked up to the braided ex-pilot, his face deeply furrowed, all his good-natured joy seemingly evaporated.

Then he broke into a loud guffaw and threw his arms around Duo. "Oh, boyo, it does my heart good to see you again!"

"Um...you're not mad?" Duo squeezed out through the forceful hug.

"Why would he be mad?" Wufei raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, the last time I saw this bambino he was sneaking out my back door with a night's earnings in his pockets and three loaves of fresh garlic bread in his arms," Angelo smiled, releasing Duo and gripping him by the shoulders. "You are not such a good thief as you boast, boyo."

"I am now," Duo returned hotly. "But, really, you're not mad?"

"Never. You should have asked for the bread, though. I'd have given you some meat to take with you." The man smiled kindly. "Did you not hear? I am always losing things when the street children are near." He looked at the group. "And now Signor Quattro is your friend? It is good."

"These are our other friends," Quatre said politely, offering names for the Quests and allowing Heero and Wufei to introduce themselves or not – they inclined their heads silently as was their way.

"Come, come. My private room is yours." He led them through the restaurant, which had not a few patrons in it, to a back room that held one large table. He settled them, took their orders, and rushed off, returning only to offer them wine which everyone refused.

"Ah, a night of adventure, I sense. Then I will ensure your meals will sustain you!" and he was gone again.

"Well, we know how he met Duo," Hadji said, "but I'm surprised at his familiarity with you two," he looked to Quatre and Trowa. Unexpectedly, Quatre blushed. Trowa took his hand and looked up.

"There was a business meeting on L2 about a year ago. Angelo's was asked to cater a part of the evening meal, and while he and one of his daughters who works as a server were in the kitchen a disgruntled hotel employee came in with a gun. Quatre and I happened to be in the kitchen at the time and we kept things from getting out of hand."

"What were you doing in the kitchen?" Jessie asked slyly.

"Cat, you and Trowa weren't..." Duo grinned evilly.

"No! Nothing like what you're imagining! But...well, they were serving fish over an asparagus pasta and I'm allergic to asparagus, so I went looking for something I could eat," he blushed again. "We really didn't do anything, but Angelo hasn't ever let us forget it."

"He also found out about Quatre's sweet tooth and has sent a dish of tiramisu to L4 every month since," Trowa smirked. He could perfectly well feel Quatre's embarrassment, but it was too amusing, not to mention cute, to let up. However, Heero came to Quatre's rescue, as he always did when Trowa wasn't doing his job.

"If we could focus on our situation, we have a lot to cover," he said nasally. Heero opened his ever-present laptop and pulled up a few files. "I've identified what OZ didn't want anybody to learn about Ezekiel Rage, if you want to know."

"The more we know about our enemy, the more we will be able to do to stop him," Wufei nodded.

"Ezekiel Rage, real name Jim Hooper, was an OZ soldier with particular skill in espionage and an expert at virtually every form of weapon. He was sent to infiltrate White Fang in AC 190, before they had made their move in the Eve wars, as Romefeller felt they might arise as a threat. During the conflict, it appears that something happened while he was on a mission. Rage had a wife and daughter, and when they surprised him on a colony for his birthday, they were caught in the crossfire when a battle erupted. They both died, and it was presumed that Rage died as well. He was not seen or heard from after that point."

"That's horrible," Jonny's face was drawn.

"Well, he obviously survived," Duo said. "But why would he want to start a war when war is what cost him his family?"

"You don't understand," Wufei said harshly. "When you lose your family, you lose your soul. There is nothing but the blood on your hands and the desire to drown in it. And if it was your fault, if it was because of you that your whole life has shattered, that fire destroys you, too. All you can do is turn it outwards and burn everything in your path. Ezekiel Rage doesn't want to start a war. He wants to annihilate everything he can until the universe burns with him."

The silence was potent, and Wufei turned away, rising abruptly and staring at nothing. Finally he spoke again.

"If you're lucky, you find your way out of the blood and fire and you regrow your soul. If not, with every day your hate grows until it could consume everything and everyone. There is no escape and no end to it."

He turned back and his eyes were haunted and fierce.

"Ezekiel Rage is insane. And he will do far worse than he has so far if we let him. We go tonight. We'll stop him, whatever it takes."

Heero stood up and moved near to Wufei. Close enough that he could have put a hand on his shoulder, but he didn't move to touch him. He met the burning eyes with his icy expression and nodded.

"Mission accepted."

The room changed, no longer stunned into silence. Wufei strode back to the table and pulled out his own computer, turning the monitor so everyone could see. He outlined the basic known layout of the mining installation and its vulnerabilities. Duo only paid a certain amount of attention, instead coordinating furiously with someone for immediate access to a ship that would get them there.

At some point, Angelo returned with piles of steaming food that smelled wonderful enough to even break the indifferent Heero from his hyper focus, as well as a little dish for Bandit under the table. Angelo's presence in the room brought a great deal of energy and positivity, and Duo and Quatre and Jonny all seemed to take that and build on it for the sake of the others. And if Duo's silliness was a bit too bright and Quatre's cheer a bit too entreating and Jonny's exuberance a bit too forced, it was all right.

But Angelo left them again to their work and the tactical meeting of the minds began in earnest.

"Wufei?" Quatre asked. "What is our objective from Preventers?"

"To apprehend the suspect with as little loss of life as possible and ensure that no damage is done to any civilians or colonies in the vicinity," he said.

"But this is a Level Zero mission," Duo reminded them. "Operation Meteor principles apply in their watered-down version."

"No one shall face a Gundam and escape," Heero repeated their dictum definitively.

"That's why Une said 'as little loss of life as possible' rather than ordering Wufei to keep us from killing anyone," Quatre pointed out. "Rage's group has already killed civilians. This won't be bloodless."

His eyes swung to the Quests and his gaze narrowed.

"Last chance. If you walk away now, you won't have to face this. But if you remain, if you hear our plans, you have to come with us. It's too much of a risk for you to know what we intend to do if you aren't with us."

"I've never taken a life," Dr Quest said after a moment, "and neither have Jonny or Jessie or Hadji. But we won't stop you. The system Rage stole is my responsibility. If he is going to start a war, I have a duty to involve myself however I will be the most help. And Race can handle himself. But maybe..." he trailed off and looked across his family.

"Don't even say it, dad," Jonny half-rose in his seat. "You're not leaving us behind. We aren't soldiers but we aren't rookies either. This is our fight now, too."

Jessie and Hadji looked as serious as Benton had ever seen them and he nodded.

"Then we're with you. But we aren't you. We can't do what you can do."

"Believe me, we're aware of that," Heero said sardonically.

"We'll try to keep you safe," Quatre said. "But remember, you promised to follow our orders, no matter what. If you do that, you should survive."

"So encouraging," Jessie said under her breath, earning her a smile from Jonny and Hadji and Duo.

"Right then. So what's the plan?" Race asked. He had one hand on his daughter's shoulder, but the blazing look in her eyes kept him from saying anything. He wanted so badly to lock her in a saferoom with the boys. And Benton, for that matter. But things had spiraled out of their control, and if nothing else, he couldn't protect them and look after the five kids who, even if they were Gundam pilots, might need help. Still, if it came to it, he'd break his promise to obey orders and get his family out if he had to.

"Duo," Quatre said in that commanding tone of voice, "you're the best at, ahem, creative entrances where you aren't welcome. You'll plan the initial infiltration."

"On it, Cat!"

"Heero, we're going to need you to locate Dr Quest's version of ZERO in their systems so we can extract it. If you can't hack them from here, you'll have to do it directly on site."

"Understood."

"Wufei, you're going to lead Trowa and Duo and I in to find Rage and stop him. We'll try to just arrest him and whoever he's got with him, but it sounds like there will be a lot of terrorists on his side. Heero will find him and direct us."

"And them?" the agent asked.

"Wufei, Heero? What do you two think?" Quatre asked instead.

"Dr Quest should stay with the shuttle. He's not quite quick enough for this fight," Heero said, shrugging. "But the others can probably handle themselves and keep from being a burden. I'll take Jonny and Hadji with me when I go after ZERO."

"Acceptable," Wufei inclined his head. "Both Bannons can join our force to bring down Rage."

The pilots exchanged a knowing look. Heero had opted to take Jonny and Hadji for a very specific reason – they were each computer-savvy enough to be a potential asset, and he had tested Jonny's combat skills himself. Hadji was cool-headed, which would be an advantage if things went badly. On the other hand, Race was perfectly suited to the more aggressive attack party, and Jessie, also computer-savvy, would be able to offer help on that front as well as being able to anticipate Jonny and Hadji if Quatre needed to know what they might do. Quatre had asked Heero and Wufei not because he didn't realize all this himself already, but because he had given them squads of their own to command and Quatre did not believe in having someone watch your back unless you chose to put them there.

"Then all that's left is to pick up our supplies and meet the transport," Quatre finished. "Duo, you'll be ready?"

"Oh yeah. I could have gotten into a place like this in my sleep when I was ten. We'll be fine." His phone chirped and he pulled it out. "Speaking of which, Howard is ready for us whenever we need to go."

"And I've arranged for Preventers equipment for us as well," Wufei added.

"Are we forgetting anything?" Quatre asked, more because it was expected than because he actually could forget something when planning a mission. But Duo perked up at once.

"You are! Most important thing ever!"

"What's that, Maxwell?" Wufei crossed his arms.

"Dessert!"


	12. Infiltration

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not really anything clever to say this time. Just thanks for the continued reading! Time to up the ante on this party!
> 
> Still don't own 'em and at this rate, never will. Oh well.
> 
> Enjoy!

The transport ship that Howard arranged was definitely a Sweepers craft – Jonny pointed out that it looked like it had been put together with super glue and he wasn't far wrong. But the New Jersey, as it was called, for all its clumsy appearance, proved to be extremely smooth to handle and much, much faster than it had any right to be. It also had a few illegal weapons, which Wufei made sure he didn't see even when he was checking their calibrations. In fact, he made a point of not looking too closely at anything in the Sweepers hangar that was their base of operations while on L2. They had used it before on other missions, thanks to Duo's alliance with the Sweepers, so he knew where not to look.

Howard had offered to pilot for them, but almost unanimously they refused politely, citing that they were about to get into something only barely Preventers-sanctioned, and that they had enough civilians in the line of fire already. Duo hopped into the pilot's seat eagerly and Howard waved them off, only slightly hesitantly. He did, however, pull Dr Quest aside while the ex-pilots were doing their final checks before takeoff.

"Don't get in their way," he said simply.

"I hadn't intended to," answered Dr Quest.

"You seem like a nice guy, and good and smart. I've read your stuff. But those five, what they can do, you have no idea. I've seen it and I still can't believe it. Your family, you're out of your league. Do what they tell you and no more. Because one of them will kill you rather than have you put the others at risk."

"Yes, Heero warned us of that," he said dryly.

"Oh, I was thinking of Duo. But same thing, really. Have a nice trip!"

That disturbing conversation in his mind, Dr Quest settled into a seat ill at ease. Quatre's knowing eyes found his and he smiled to cover it, but it didn't seem to be enough.

"No, this isn't safe," the blond answered the unspoken question even as the shuttle began to move towards the hangar bay doors, "but you said yourself that this is your responsibility. You've got to see it through now."

But before he could answer, Heero huffed angrily. "Chibi, what are you doing here?"

Everyone turned to see where Heero had fished Bandit out of a hiding spot under a seat.

"Chibi?" Hadji questioned.

"It wasn't me!" Jonny backed away from the angry glare coming in his direction.

"Oh. I brought him," called Duo from up front. "In case we need a weird distraction. Besides, the little guy can keep Doc company."

"Duo..." the Japanese pilot said warningly.

"Too late to go back now," Trowa pointed out, nodding at the blackness of space that had just become visible through the windows. His face was carefully neutral. So neutral that he didn't even quirk an expression when Heero thrust the dog into his arms.

"Secure him...somewhere. And leave him there. I've got work to do."

Nobody laughed. But they all thought about it.

The tension in the shuttle was palpable, but the only one who seemed really out of sorts was Dr Quest. Even Race and the trio were outwardly calm, though none of them could manage the absolute relaxedness of Wufei and Trowa, or the elaborate casual air of Heero. Quatre tried to offer consoling words to Benton a time or two, but it got him nowhere and eventually he gave up and let it be. Instead, he pulled up his own computer and placed a call to Rashid.

"We're going in," he reported simply. "I'm sending you the specs now, just in case."

"Acknowledged. Master Quatre, shouldn't we be there for backup?"

"We have to move at once and invisibly if we can. It's not an operation for a large group," he countered. "Don't mobilize the Maganacs unless I fail to check in after six hours."

"As you wish. Be safe, Master Quatre. Allah be with you."

"And with you, my friend. I'll speak to you in six hours."

He closed the screen and took a deep breath. Then, all business, but not a businessman's business, he rose. "Time to suit up."

Floating to a closet at the aft end of the cabin, he removed a bag no one had seen him stash on-board. From it he pulled out a flight-suit for each person. The suits were dark, streamlined, and each had a cuff on the left-hand wrist that seemed to serve as an interlinked communications system. Quatre tossed a suit each to Race, Jessie, Jonny, and Hadji.

"I had to guess on your sizes," he said apologetically. "But they're better than anything else. If there are unexpected temperature changes, these will protect you. And they'll keep us linked to one another if something goes wrong. They'll even stop a certain amount of damage from some weapons."

"What about rapiers?" Trowa asked with a private smile.

"Never mind," Heero said, pulling out his own. "Get changed. Duo will need to switch out so he can suit up as well before finishing his part of the mission."

There was an eerie cold efficiency to how the former Gundam pilots put on the flight-suits, their motions practiced and precise. The four seemed to almost hum with an energy as they fastened the cuffs and began strapping other gear onto the suits. Wufei added two pistols to his katana, plus a small bag across his back that held many sets of handcuffs and a small first aid kit. Heero had several firearms of small-to-medium caliber, extra clips, and his computer securely affixed between his shoulder blades. Trowa and Quatre were similarly armed, and Trowa also had a bag like Wufei's. Quatre's suit was the only one that was particularly different from the others in that its wrist communication device was a bit more elaborate.

When the Quests had also gotten themselves into their suits, Wufei issued them each an earpiece as well as a sidearm and several clips of tranquilizer darts.

"These will hurt no one," he said, "only take them out for approximately two or three hours. Do not hesitate to use them. And do not shoot us." There was a wryness to his expression as he said it.

Heero went to the cockpit to replace Duo while the braided pilot came back for his own. Duo's suit was armed similarly to Quatre's, but he also had four wicked-looking knives strapped to his legs. He pulled one out, tested the blade, and turned faster than anyone could react to hurl it directly at Trowa.

Who plucked it out of midair inches from his face.

"Wow," breathed Jessie.

"That's nothing," Duo grinned, and there was a feral quality to him that was more than a little intimidating. "Trowa's sister's really good. She'd have gotten the knife into his hair before he caught it."

"I'm somewhat more impressed that he _did_ catch it at all," Hadji commented.

Trowa merely inclined his head and threw the knife back at Duo with approximately equal skill. Duo caught it and sheathed it. Then he pulled a small box from the bottom of the bag. Examining its contents, he quirked an eyebrow at Quatre.

"All for me?"

"Of course."

"Sweet!" Duo tucked the box under his arm and moved back towards the cockpit. "We're close to arrival," he said over his shoulder. "I'm going to get us into the damaged hangar on the far side. There shouldn't be a lot of security there, and the New Jersey can short out or interrupt most of the cameras in the area. Be ready to go."

In that moment, something cold formed in the pit of Jonny's stomach. This was real. He was about to sneak onto a terrorist base and hope to come out alive. Sure, he had the five Gundam pilots to help, and they were probably more than a match for a hundred ruthless terrorists, but he was not that good. Jonny and Hadji had been chasing bad guys since they'd been kids, and as they'd gotten older they'd gotten better at it, but this wasn't like that. This was more akin to the war he'd been so grateful to have avoided. Jonny was glad his dad was staying behind. He knew his dad could handle himself, but maybe none of them could handle this.

"Don't," Quatre said, suddenly appearing in his field of view. "We're not asking more of you than we know you can handle. But you need to keep focused. Don't let doubt cloud your judgment now."

"How…?" he began to ask. But Quatre shook his head.

"I forgot we hadn't told you. It's too late to explain now."

"We need Quatre's gift to work properly for this. If you're clouding him, you'll have to stay here." Trowa's voice was firm.

"What does that mean?" Race wanted to know. But he was ignored.

"My friend," and Hadji put a hand on his brother's shoulder, "breathe. Clear your mind. Let your apprehension go. I will explain things later. For now, know that it will be a distraction to Quatre if he is worrying about you. You are not facing this alone. We are with you."

Jonny met his eyes and saw steadiness there. Steadiness and trust. He took a deep breath. Yes, he could do this. Jessie and Race would have his back, too, even though they'd be elsewhere. Really, he should be more worried about them since they would be in the thick of it. But strangely he wasn't. He shifted his gaze to Heero and saw the Japanese young man watching him with an unexpectedly understanding expression in his eyes.

"You are not weak," he said suddenly. "I will not have to protect you."

And that was perhaps the most comforting thing anybody could have said. Jonny nodded and set about securing his sidearm where he could get at it.

"Comm check," Wufei said. "Report in."

"Zero One," Heero's voice sounded in Jonny's ear. Surprisingly, he had not spoken aloud, merely moved a touch of air through his lips, and it picked up the signal. Whatever else, Quatre sure had the best tech for this kind of job.

"Zero Two," came Duo's.

"Zero Three," Trowa had turned to look out a window, but his hand trailed back to grip Quatre's shoulder.

"Zero Four," Quatre put a hand over Trowa's, and there was comfort in his voice.

"Zero Five," Wufei said. Then, he clicked a button on the wrist of his suit in demonstration. "This is what activates the voice-capture. Turn it off any time you're not whispering. The earpiece will still pick up your voice, but we won't all be deafened. Also, do not ever refer to us by our names once we leave this craft. You know our numbers. Use them. It matters less for Yuy and Maxwell, but the rest of us need to keep ourselves anonymous."

"Do we get numbers?" Jessie asked. "Do we even need them?"

"No," Quatre replied. "First of all, they know who you are. And second of all, no one should ever have their name taken from them." But there wasn't any bitterness or sadness in his voice. It was a statement of fact, neutral and simple.

"Test your comms," Wufei regained their attention.

"Race in," he said, softer than a whisper.

"Jonny, check."

"Jessie in."

"Hadji."

"The equipment built into the arm-piece includes a locator for each of the linked suits," Heero explained. "If you get separated, the locator will either lead you back to one of us or to the New Jersey. But don't get separated."

"Hey, guys," came Duo's voice, "if you're done with training camp, we're here."

The view out the window in the cabin showed that the mining installation, a complex built into the side of an asteroid that had been pulled into orbit, was looming before them. The shuttle was approaching from the shadowed side, hanging almost so low it could skim the surface of the rough rock. All the main hangars were on the other side of complex, but one lone door, half-hidden amidst a certain amount of debris, opened slowly at their approach. Duo had said that the New Jersey would be able to get into the system, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief; no one particularly wanted to start this venture with a spacewalk.

Inside the hangar it was almost totally dark, with only the lights from the shuttle and one or two lone hallway lamps illuminating the place. Duo piloted through the airlock, closing the doors behind them. A moment later a green light above the door indicated that there was sufficient oxygen in the area beyond to warrant disembarking. Duo came back from the cockpit and stepped up to Dr Quest.

"Doc, we're leaving you with the New Jersey, right? The ship's built to lock down to a code, and Quatre's programmed the code into our suits, so it should unlock when we get back here. If it doesn't, you can manually override it from up front. Do you know how to fire her up?"

"Yes, I think so," he nodded.

"Good. If I call ahead and tell you to get her ready to take off, do it. And don't open that door to anybody who isn't us. The New Jersey has some defenses of her own, so you'll be fine."

Dr Quest put a hand on Jonny's head momentarily and gripped Hadji's shoulder, tossing a look to Jessie. Then he turned to Race with a serious look. "Take care of yourselves."

"We'll be fine, Benton," Race assured him.

"Don't worry, Dr Quest. We are in the best of hands," Hadji assured him.

Dr Quest looked like he intended to say more, but Wufei held up a hand. "It's time. Let's go."

As they opened the hatch and half-walked, half-floated into the darkened hangar, Dr Quest couldn't help but notice that the five Gundam pilots had not spoken to one another, had not wished each other luck. But when they reached the doorway where they had to split up for their various tasks, they stopped. They said nothing, just looked at one another for a blazing, intense moment. And then Heero broke away and headed down a corridor, Jonny and Hadji trailing after. Wufei led his group around a corner and Dr Quest was alone. He closed the shuttle door and retreated to the cockpit where he could track their movements. That, and listening for them over the comms was the best he could do for now. He could only hope it would be enough.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"How many of these guys are there?" Duo asked as Wufei called for a halt after a signal from Quatre.

"Quiet, Zero Two," he grumbled, flattening himself into the shadows. Everyone else followed suit. A few minutes later, Quatre's blond head poked back into the light and he nodded.

"All clear. They're patrolling behind us now."

Wufei was always appreciative of having Quatre on a mission like this. Where their main objective was to put a stop to a madman's plans, they would do much better to find said madman first and incapacitate him before entering into a fight with each and every one of his minions. Quatre's space heart allowed him to sense the approach of others, so evading detection was made much easier. All of the pilots had gotten in and out of military bases throughout the Eve wars, and they could all do it flawlessly, but a group of six was somewhat harder to hide. Quatre's ability to "read" the enemies saved them much frantic hiding.

Still, Duo had a point. Thus far, they had encountered four different patrols, all of which Quatre said were made up of teams of three or four. How many followers could Rage have amassed?

"Zero Five," came the soft voice of Trowa. There was a slight ping after his words that meant he was using a private line rather than the one to everyone's earpieces. Wufei remembered he hadn't shown the Quests how to do that. Oh well. They shouldn't be keeping secrets from the mission leaders anyway.

"Zero Five in," he replied in that softer-than-a-whisper that carried only to the comm. "What is it?"

"Zero Four knows we're getting close. He also may be partially compromised."

It took all of Wufei's considerable self-discipline not to whip around at that. Instead he let out a breath, waved Duo to scout ahead a bit, and replied, "Explain."

"He won't say anything, but being open enough to sense people means he's aware of something that's…painful." The pause in Trowa's words said more than Trowa actually had.

"Suggestions?" Wufei asked curtly.

"Not yet. He doesn't want me to know about it, but he can't shield me and still listen for our enemies. When we find Ezekiel Rage, though, if he's the cause of it, it might be tough on his space heart." Trowa was the master at a neutral, unaffected voice, but the echoes he was getting from Quatre must obviously be rather strong given the slightest waver in his tone.

"Understood," Wufei replied. Then he switched to the universal channel. "Zero Four, are we close?"

"Yes," and now that he knew what he was listening for, Wufei could hear the almost inaudible strain in Quatre's words, "just a little farther in, three or four levels deeper, I think."

"Zero Two, are we clear to proceed?"

"Clear," Duo reported.

Wufei led the others around the corner and to where Duo had taken up a position. He managed a glance at Quatre as he waved the rest into the access shaft they had decided to use instead of the elevators and lifts. Quatre's expressive face was closed, his eyes intent. It was his "listening" face from when he was keeping himself aware of emotions around him. But there was something hollowed, almost haunted in his eyes, and his jaw was tight. Wufei would never have spotted it unless he knew what he was looking for. But he had also trained Quatre himself, and now that he was paying attention properly, he could see the signs. A lesser man might have been shaking from the onslaught of whatever was so negative, but Quatre showed no indication of it.

Wufei guarded his own feelings carefully, letting nothing of his awareness slip to the empath. But he vowed to keep an eye on him, just in case.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Zero One to Zero Five," Heero said, not bothering to whisper. The security control room on that level had been unmanned, stupidly enough, and with Hadji watching the door and Jonny watching the monitors beside him, he felt relatively at ease.

"Zero Five in."

"I've breached their systems and located Rage and his men. You're almost right on top of the bulk of them. They're in a large area two levels below you."

"Roger that, Zero One. Status of your mission?"

"The system has been installed on several different computers," Heero replied. "One of them appears to be isolated from the network, so we'll have to go there to remove it through a direct line. I am already wiping the others from here."

"Status of your team?"

Heero glanced over. Hadji was intently looking out the small window to the corridor, focused and alert and utterly calm. Jonny at his side was a bit more energetic from the adrenaline, but completely capable given his experience. They had met up with two or three guards, but the Quests had proved to be good shots and Heero had let them handle it themselves.

"Unchanged," he reported.

"Good. Keep us informed. How soon before you move out to the last computer system?"

"I estimate four minutes until my virus finishes wiping ZERO from the network."

"We will encounter Rage before you begin, then. Assume radio silence from us means we're busy," and there was a sardonic sound to Wufei's whisper.

"Acknowledged." Heero ended the conversation.

"Hey, um, Zero One?" Jonny said hesitantly.

"What is it?" He didn't even look up from where he was directing his viral program to wipe out as much of the ZERO as he could reach.

"Rage seems to be giving some sort of speech. Should we listen?"

That got Heero's attention and his head snapped up. He nodded and reopened the line to Wufei and the others.

"Zero One to Zero Five."

"What now?"

"Target has begun extolling his own virtues. Would you like to hear?" he smiled to himself.

"Yeah, 'cause what we need is a crazy guy yapping in our ears," Duo put in.

"Shut up, Zero Two," Wufei returned.

"Zero One, please send it to us," came Quatre's soft voice. "I think it will benefit us to know what we're really dealing with here."

"All right. Put it through," Wufei agreed.

Heero nodded to Jonny, who at once began patching the audio from the room into his own comm unit. Heero went back to his computer, looking up now and again to make sure Jonny wasn't doing something wrong. But no, Jonny proved to be adept at the task at hand, which didn't much surprise him. "He'd have been a good pilot," he thought to himself. "Not relying on the strengths of others to keep his equipment or mobile suit in good repair. Might even have improved on those awful late-model Leos." But he cut that thought off at once. Being a pilot was a skill, but having to kill came with it, and he wouldn't wish that on the still-innocent young man before him.

A moment later, Rage's voice filtered into the earpiece. He has a masterful, compelling voice, hard to ignore. And as he spoke, Heero found himself listening more and more.

"… _for the Book of Rage shall guide us! Lift up your eyes, my brothers! The blackness of space has invaded the souls of humanity, and the people have become corrupt, sickened. And we will be the answer to this sickness. We will purge space and the Earth of all that threatens it! Our hands will bring the burning to humanity as the lightning brings fire to a forest that has reached its time to burn. Humanity has reached its time to burn. For it says 'Let not the shadow lie, but purge it in holy light.' Our sword has been prepared and our fires have been lit. We need only the one who will lead us forth to the paradise we desire. That shall be our reward. So sayeth the Book of Rage._ "

"Zero One," came Quatre's voice, insistent. Heero felt the tiniest tug in his heart that told him Quatre was feeling a great deal more than he was letting be heard either over the comm or through their connection.

"Zero One in," he answered.

"They're talking about someone to pilot ZERO. You have to get there, now. You have to pull it out before they can activate it."

"Mission accepted," Heero replied, rising at once. His virus was doing its work and he did not need to monitor it. "Let's go."

"What happens if they activate the ZERO System?" Hadji asked as they made their way into the deserted corridor.

"I don't know," Heero replied, "but if Zero Four is worried, you can bet he does."


	13. Encounters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, I just couldn't leave you with half the action, especially given how short that one was. So two chapters for the price of one again!
> 
> Enjoy!

"Let's just hope I'm wrong," Quatre said, not looking at Wufei.

"I didn't ask if you were right. I asked what you think they're planning to do."

"We don't have time for this. Zero One will handle taking care of the system. We've got to get Rage," Race pointed out. Wufei glared at him, but realized the sense in the man's words and nodded.

"This way," Duo said, dropping through a hatch in the floor. He landed light as a cat and just as silently in a hallway below, which should have been just a corridor away from the grand room where Rage was giving his speech. Jessie followed him, also landing perfectly. Then Quatre and Trowa and Race, with Wufei bringing up the rear.

"What's the plan?" Jessie asked.

"You and Race incapacitate Rage," Quatre whispered into the comm. "We'll handle everybody else." At her start of surprise, he added, "I believe you two can take him, even if he is crazy. But there's a lot of other people there, and we're better prepared to take on a crowd."

"Understood," Race winked at his daughter. "We got this."

"Good. How do you work in concealment?" Trowa asked.

Now it was Jessie's turn to grin. "Excellently."

"Then on my count," Wufei said. "Five, four, three, two…one."

On cue, Trowa rolled a pair of smoke bombs down the corridor. Duo charged after them with two more, which he tossed ahead as soon as he entered the room beyond. Everyone else began to sprint, and within moments they were ducking through a crush of people. Race and Jessie ignored the way the smoke made their eyes water and rushed through the press of strangers, many of whom seemed to fall away even as they reached them and there was a hail of gunshots from everywhere. The form of a man wearing a long coat and carrying a book that looked sinister enough to be the "Book of Rage" loomed in the smoke.

"I got this," Race said, lunging. But the man's huge arm came up and intercepted Race's blow.

"You who dare to challenge those who serve the Book of Rage will perish in flames!" he bellowed.

"Dad!" Jessie called, moving to Rage's other side. While Race blocked, she swept with a leg, trying to make him fall.

"Fools!" he shouted, dodging her attack. At the same time, he thrust an elbow hard into Race's face, leaving him with blood streaming from his nose. "You will pay for this!"

Then he threw himself at Jessie, who mostly evaded him, but couldn't block the hard blow that hit her on the temple and left her seeing stars. She cried out.

"Karla?" Jessie couldn't place the reference, but Rage seemed to be moving towards her slowly, and her gut told her something was very wrong.

"Red!" she vaguely heard Duo shout somewhere in the smoke.

But a moment later, Quatre was there. He set himself between the huge man and where Jessie realized she was sitting on the floor. The slight blond dodged a pair of blows, reaching forward to intercept Rage's left arm in a textbook block-and-restrain motion. But the moment he came into contact with the man, he locked up rigid and still. Rage stopped moving too, as if frozen.

"Zero Four!" Trowa bellowed, arriving as well. He wrenched Quatre away from the man and the blond shook his head, clearly dazed.

"We're outmatched," Wufei spoke calmly through the earpiece. He sounded as though he were still fighting, and the _tzing_ of his katana against armor and weapons was audible. "Zero One, we have to retreat. Are you finished?"

"Retreat?" called Duo aloud from somewhere in the fray. "I'm just getting started!"

"So are they," returned Race, pointing. The initial smoke from the bombs had begun to disperse after the environmental systems of the complex quickly pulled the pollutants out of the air. Through the hazy-but-not-opaque air, they could see many, many individuals rushing towards them from various places. Quatre was still leaning heavily on Trowa, and Race had started to brawl with some nearby men, but that left only Wufei and Duo to deal with the oncoming horde.

"Almost," came Heero's voice through the comm. "Unexpected delay."

"Finish it and meet at the rendezvous," Wufei ordered.

"Understood."

"Come on," and Duo grabbed Jessie's elbow and pulled her to her feet.

"I'm all right," she protested.

"Yeah, but a knock on the head doesn't make you the best for defense," he replied, not letting go of her arm as he ran. Then he looked back over his shoulder. "You guys are lucky! Shinigami is gonna come for you next time! Especially you, you big wacko! What did you do to my buddy?" Without breaking stride, he drew one of the knives from his thigh and stuck it between the ribs of someone attempting to get too close to Jessie.

"I'm okay," Quatre said, suddenly running beside them. Trowa turned and shot at a few men who were following them. "Zero Five is right. We need more backup to finish this mission."

"Hadji to Zero Five."

"Zero Five in."

"We're pinned down," he reported tightly. "We can't get to the computer. But there's an access shaft not far from where you are that should get you here from what I remember of the blueprints. Can you back us up?"

"Where's Zero One?" Duo asked.

"Busy," came the familiar pilot's clipped voice. The gunfire was loud enough that he was probably firing with both guns and running from cover at the same time.

"Zero Five and Zero Three, take Race and Jessie to the rendezvous," Quatre said. "Zero Two and I will go."

"Wait, why you?" Race asked.

"Don't question it. Just go!" Duo practically threw Jessie at Trowa and he caught her. A quick glance, though, and he let her go to run on her own.

"Zero Four…" Trowa begain.

"I know. But I have to do this," Quatre interrupted. "If Zero One can't put a stop to the system, the only other one of us who knows it well enough is me."

"Fine! He's got it in hand. Now let's follow the perfectly sensible orders and get moving," Wufei said, joining the running group, face twisted with anger; even if backing out of a situation where they were unlikely to succeed was logical, it still felt to him to be utterly deplorable. He and Trowa paused long enough to open the access shaft and cover Quatre and Duo while they slid into it, then followed at Race's heels down the corridor.

"Will they be okay?" Race asked.

"They're fine," Trowa said tightly. "I actually think we're in more danger." And he pointed to the very sizable number of men rushing after them.

"Yeah. Come on, dad," Jessie picked up the pace, her head clearing. "We've got to be ready to go when they meet us at the shuttle."

"But there's one thing we've missed," Wufei said as the four skidded around a corner and dove for an elevator – three armed men in the lift were a lot easier to handle than trying to get into the ceiling at a dead run with dozens not far behind.

"What's that?"

"What happened to Rage?"

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Running low!" Jonny shouted.

"Here," and Hadji tossed him a clip between bursts of firing.

They could see the computer from where the three of them were pinned down by gunfire on the wrong side of a doorway. In the room beyond, there was a contraption that looked vaguely like the cockpit of a mobile suit on a low platform. But between them and that platform was a very narrow doorway and a very large number of men with automatic weapons. Heero had made one go at it already, and received a slight graze along the thigh for his troubles. There was a light in the soldier's eyes that suggested he wanted to simply throw himself into it and take the damage that would come, but he didn't.

Neither Hadji nor Jonny could know, even if they could have guessed, that there were two things holding him back from doing just that. The first was their presence – if he'd been on a solo mission, two dozen armed men might not have stopped him from risking himself. But he knew they were counting on him to keep them safe. And the second was that Heero had long since lost his desire to die. It started with the bond to Quatre's heart, and it ended with the bonds he had to the other pilots. If he let those goons shoot him full of holes, he would lose that.

Never.

But as though thinking of them had summoned them, a moment later two figures in flight suits dropped down into the high-ceilinged room beyond and opened fire from behind the gunmen.

"Now!" Heero shouted, breaking cover and using the distraction of their arrival to charge ahead, bringing down a man with every shot. Jonny and Hadji followed, shooting as they ran.

"Nice to see you guys!" Jonny quipped, jumping behind a bank of computers as he got a good angle on three of the attackers.

"Figures we'd have to bail you out, Zero One," Duo called teasingly even as he pulled the gun out of a man's hands and used it to smash another in the face.

"Get to it," Quatre said, switching from his gun to hand-to-hand in the middle of the melee. "We've got this."

Hadji had to pause for a moment watching Quatre and Duo battle. He'd seen them each fight before, of course, Quatre on the hotel rooftop and Duo against Jessie in the desert, but here they were unstoppable. They played off one another without effort, Quatre throwing someone just as Duo needed something to spring off of, Duo tripping someone coming up on Quatre's blind side while he smashed his knee into the face of someone reaching for Duo's feet. They didn't even need to look to know where they were and what they were doing to work together.

"No wonder the Gundams were so feared and respected," he considered, "if this is what they can do when they're united."

Meanwhile, Heero had cleared himself a path to the unit on the pedestal. He estimated that the circuit-boards he needed were underneath the left-hand control panel, so for efficiency's sake he jumped into the seat where he could get at them more easily. But the release was coded and he had to waste time hacking the keypad. So intent was he on his task he didn't realize until it was too late that someone had drawn near.

A shock of terror from Quatre so potent he could feel his heart leap was the only warning before a helmet dropped onto his head and his mind was lost, awash in pain.

"No!" Quatre was running and cutting through his opponents without thought. He had kept such a lock on his empathy since the terrifying exposure to Ezekiel Rage's heart that he hadn't allowed himself to feel anything that might distract him as that beacon of horror had done, so he had no warning when the man himself entered the room.

"Heero!" Duo shouted, also turning in time to see the masked and face-torn terrorist shove a simulation helmet onto Heero's head. The machine began to hum as ZERO activated.

"The base has been breached," came a frighteningly monotonous voice that might have been Heero's. "Suggest self-destruct of tertiary hangar to ensure victory. 85.2 percent chance of success. Rerouting concussive blasts, completion in three minutes."

"Zero Five," Quatre shouted into his comm. "Evacuate now!"

"Where are you?"

"It's ZERO. The system is going to eliminate you as a threat. You have less than three minutes. Go or you'll all be dead!" he demanded.

"Not without you and my sons!" Dr Quest's voice came over the frequency.

"Dad, they're gonna blow you up!" Jonny argued.

"Zero Five, I'm ordering you," Quatre said warningly.

"All right. Survive, so I can kill you myself later," Wufei snarled. There was a certain amount of objecting going on over the comm line, but they didn't have time to listen to it.

"We've gotta get him out of it," Duo drew alongside Quatre, keeping the rest of the terrorists at bay but only just.

"Duo I...oh Allah," and Quatre pressed a hand to his heart. His face contorted in pain. He dropped to one knee, though he still managed to shoot someone through the arm.

"The Book of Rage states that those who bend to our power may be spared, but those who defy us will die in flames!" Rage spread his arms dramatically. "The sword of our intent lives! If you dare to confront it, you will regret the day you were born!"

"Yeah, I don't know when that was," Duo sneered. He glanced at his wrist; the indicators showed that the New Jersey was already moving out of the hangar. He looked over his shoulder to where Jonny and Hadji were making a good show of things, but were clearly outnumbered and running low of tranq shots.

"Cat, you gotta hang in there," he said, trying to simultaneously haul his friend back to his feet while also kicking someone – it mostly worked, though he wrenched Quatre's shoulder in the doing.

"I'm out!" Hadji called. He and Jonny began backing towards Duo and Quatre, either consciously looking for a better position or subconsciously retreating to their allies for help, or both. But the seemingly endless stream of armed men was coming from everywhere and they were very, very surrounded.

"Duo," Quatre managed. "Run. I can't, not like this, and those two won't make it. Surrender is the only option for the three of us. You've got a different one."

"No way," he shook his head.

"Wisdom," said Rage, moving closer. Quatre flinched very slightly and Duo felt his skin get cold even through the flight-suit. "You may yet survive to understand the power of the Book of Rage!"

"Listen buddy!" Duo shouted up at the menacing face before him, "I ain't leaving my friends with the likes of you. We might be outmatched for now, but I'm gonna enjoy taking that smile off your face one piece at a time."

"Defiance in the face of destruction is arrogance and must be punished!" Rage returned, holding the book aloft. Then he seemed to drop a certain amount of his zealousness and smiled coldly at the four before him.

"Your companion has given himself to the bringer of annihilation, and when it has driven him out of his mind I shall feed each of you to its terrors one at a time. If you survive, you will serve the Book of Rage. And if you do not, then you shall suffer until your very last breath."

 

-==OOO==-

 

"We can't just leave them there!" Race demanded, trying to shove past Trowa to get to where Wufei was piloting the New Jersey through the hangar and towards the air lock.

"Jonny and Quatre said they were going to blow us up," Jessie said. "We can't help them if we get killed!"

"But leaving them with that monster?" he argued.

"Race, I hate it, too, but Jessie's right."

"You didn't see him, Benton," Race swung around and narrowed his eyes at his oldest friend. "Rage is as psychopath, and he's...there's no telling..."

"They will survive," Wufei said from the pilot's chair. He forced open the airlock doors with some quick keystrokes and pushed the shuttle out into space, boosting the thrusters to their maximum. "Duo and Quatre and Heero will protect Jonny and Hadji until we return. And they know we will."

"Yeah, but..."

"Please." Trowa's voice was low. "We know what it is costing you to leave them here," and he swallowed hard, "but this is the only choice. Quatre gave his order. He wouldn't have told us to run unless there was something worse than just some explosives headed our way. Whatever it is...it's more than he can bear and still worry about us."

"How can you know that?" Benton asked.

"Because Quatre is an empath, and we share a bond. And right now, Quatre is trying to protect me from what he's feeling. But he can't hide it all." Trowa met Dr Quest's wide eyes unflinchingly. "He made the best decision he could, and he needed us to trust him. I can't tell why. But if the life of Jonny or Hadji rested on our being away so he can protect them, would you disobey?"

"Trowa," Jessie said softly, and she put a hand on his shoulder. She was surprised when he leaned into it slightly.

"We left behind everything that matters to us," Wufei said, and the iron constitution of his voice was gruff, "and we have left them to we do not know what. But they are not defenseless. Duo is with them, and if anyone can find a way out, it will be Winner's brain and Maxwell's little tricks. And Yuy is too stubborn to let anyone interfere in a mission. They will endure. And we will come back for them. Do not trivialize their sacrifice by failing to value what they are giving for you."

"So what do we do now?" Benton found a voice around a thick lump. He was watching Trowa carefully, and he was amazed at how subtly he drew support from Jessie, and how openly she offered it; without his usual support, he seemed to gravitate wherever he could find something to hold him up. Benton knew how worried he was – how much worse must it be not only to worry, but to know exactly how worried he should be? Accepting the explanation of Quatre's empathy came easily; frankly, it made too much sense given everything he'd seen in the last two days, not to mention the recent studies of unusual abilities cropping up in the last few generations.

"We return to L2. Trowa, you'll make the call to Rashid. They won't stay behind with Winner in danger, and I'd rather have them at my back than anyone else. We will make a plan and we will execute it. And anyone who has harmed them." There was fire in Wufei's voice and it burned the cold out of the shuttle's atmosphere.

But still, there was a tiny beeping from each person's wrist, signaling that they had exceeded the distance for the comms to work, and when that link was severed, it hurt like a blow.

"They...they'll be all right, won't they?" Jessie asked. Benton reached down and pulled Bandit, circling unhappily at the tension, into his arms. It was the closest he could get to holding his sons.

"They will survive. That is the most we can ask of them," Trowa said. And he hung his head like a beaten horse. Quatre was hurt, and frightened, and trying desperately to shut him out. And if they got much farther away, he would succeed when distance helped him and muted their connection completely.

The last thing Trowa felt across their bond before it went silent was a shock of pain and fear and horror and all he could do was hope his beloved would endure until he could return to his side.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Well, at least the cell is okay," Jonny tried to make light of things as he settled on the bench in the windowless room. "It could have been a lot worse."

"Cat? Cat, what can I do?" Duo was ignoring Jonny. When Rage had ordered them locked up, he had made a point of shoving Quatre, and the blond had trembled at the touch, which seemed to amuse the crazy terrorist. Now that they were alone and, as far as Duo could tell, unmonitored, he crouched before his friend.

"It's...Heero's fighting the ZERO System. But it's not easy for him. And Trowa's..." he looked up. "It just hurts, Duo. Keeping Heero out and keeping it from Trowa and keeping myself afloat."

"Allow me," Hadji offered. He stretched out a steady hand, which Quatre grabbed gratefully. The serenity and iron emotional control that was Hadji's mental discipline closed over his heart like a blanket, easing the spiky pains from everywhere else.

"Thank you," he whispered. After a minute or two, he was able to shore up his own shields and could release Hadji. "I'm okay," he met Duo's eyes. "It was just too much."

"Rage?"

"Yeah. It's...a good name for him. His soul, Duo, it..." and Quatre's eyes clouded. "It's like being dropped into a fire that burns like a beam cannon. I couldn't defend against it. But he got lost, too. I think he might be a little like me. Not an empath, not exactly. But, there's something in the way he draws people to him that isn't quite normal. It made it ten times harder for me to deal with him."

"So you're an empath?" Jonny spoke up from his perch. As the three turned to him, he shrugged. "Hey, you said it, not me. I take it this is what you didn't want to tell me," he looked at Hadji.

"It was not mine to tell," Hadji said.

"Never mind. Yes, it's true. And I have a particularly strong bond to both Heero and Trowa. Which is how I know Heero is not going to last long in this ZERO." He looked at Duo and nodded meaningfully.

"I know what you're thinking, Cattie, but I'm not gonna do it so don't ask." Duo flipped his braid over his shoulder. At a blank look from Jonny and Hadji he leaned back against the wall, hands folded behind his head. "Cat here wants me to break out on my own and leave you guys."

"We're all hostages until we get Heero back," Quatre pointed out. "I'm going to be a little shaky until I get my shields worked out. If you're not stuck here with us, you'll be able to help us out later. Maybe you could even get to Heero sooner."

"Normally I'd agree with ya, but not this time." Duo turned his violet eyes on his best friend. "No offense to our new buds over there, but I am not leaving you alone with Rage with your empathy out of whack and the one guy you can anchor to plugged into that system. I'm probably the worst person to get you out of a funk if it all goes to hell, but I'll try. I'm not leaving you when you can't protect yourself. Trowa would skin me alive and cut off my hair." He managed a smile.

"Duo..."

"Oh, stop it," Jonny said. "He's right. We shouldn't split up if you're not all right. I'm all for breaking out of here, but we need to go together."

"Will the system...will it kill Heero?" Hadji asked softly.

"No," Quatre shook his head. "He's too strong for that. But he might wish it had."

"So when he gets back, then we'll bust our way out," Duo spoke before anyone could elaborate on Quatre's dire words.

"Quatre," Hadji began, "Heero mentioned when you sent us after the computer system that he believed you had a guess as to what Rage was going to use ZERO to do. Can you tell us? Perhaps if we know what he is planning we can better prepare ourselves to counter him when we are free."

"I think Rage means to attack, and he's going to use ZERO to do it."

"Well, but we knew that," Duo blew his bangs out of his face. "He's got the weapons and all."

"No, you don't understand. I don't think Rage wants a war." Quatre closed his eyes. "He wants to annihilate the human race."

" _What_?" Jonny practically fell off the bench.

"He stole weapons, lots of them, and the supplies to make nuclear and chemical warheads. But nowhere in any of this have we seen the trappings of an army," Quatre said.

"What do you call all those goons that came at his beck and call?" Duo huffed.

"Merely those misguided souls drawn to his madness," Hadji said. Quatre nodded.

"Exactly. He doesn't have mobile suits or a fleet of ships. He doesn't even have large-scale weaponry to mount a tactical assault on Earth. What he does have is a lot of ways to make missiles, a place to launch them from, and a system that can determine how to launch those missiles in the best way to decimate every colony and every country on Earth. Rage isn't going to start a war. He's going to start a genocide."

"And that's why he needed dad's research," Jonny breathed. "He needed a program that would coordinate the attack. The way you explained that the ZERO System commanded the mobile dolls in the Eve wars. He can't control them all individually and get them where he wants them, but ZERO can."

"Exactly."

"You sure seem to know a lot about the system, about what it does to people," he said nonchalantly. Hadji sent him a look, but Jonny ignored it.

"During the war, we all got plugged into it at one point or another," Duo jumped in casually. "Heero more than most, but we all went through it at some point. Apparently Gundam pilots make good guinea pigs."

"I used it," Quatre said almost too softly to hear. "First it took over my mind, broke what I thought I knew. Trowa and Heero pulled me out of it, but not before I'd done the unthinkable. Later I was able to use it to win the war for us, but only after it had been tweaked first." He leaned his head back and closed his eyes.

After many minutes or maybe hours of silence, Quatre's head tipped up abruptly.

"They're bringing him here," he said. "But he's in bad shape."

"What does that mean?" Jonny asked.

"Cat?" Duo looked at him.

"Get over there," he gestured to the far part of the cell, "and don't try to touch him. Whatever you do. He'll kill you and not know it's you."

"And what will you do?" Hadji wanted to know as the three obeyed.

But he never got an answer because the next moment the door swung open. A form was flung through the sudden bright light before the door slammed shut again. Heero, eyes almost completely dilated, looked up through his bangs like a wild animal. In a mess of arms and legs, he dove into an empty corner and curled up, back to the wall, rocking and muttering to himself. He never blinked his eyes.

"Heero?" Quatre moved slowly towards his friend, dropping to his knees when he was a yard or two away and scooting in low. "Heero, can you hear me?"

"What did it do to him?" Hadji demanded. "He seems to have lost his mind."

"It's the ZERO System. It's been so long since he's used it, and this new form is a lot more brutal, like the original incarnation. It makes you hallucinate, lose your grip on reality." Quatre breathed out long and deep and said, "I can help him. Just…stay back, okay?"

Then he crossed the remaining distance and put his palm against Heero's pale cheek.

Almost at once, the dark-haired pilot reacted, his head snapping up and his hands flashing forward to wrap around Quatre's throat. He growled, low and harsh in his chest, and his unseeing eyes were wild and feral.

"Quatre!" Jonny started forward, only to have Hadji pull him back.

"Don't. He said to stay back."

"But Hadj!"

"Let him try, Jonny," Duo said quietly. "He knows what he's doing. I hope."

Quatre ignored them all. He'd lost his grip on Heero's skin when he'd snapped his head back like that, but now there was a bare hand around his throat. It was enough. Though Quatre's body wanted to scream and fight for air, he forced his eyes to meet Heero's calmly. He put both hands onto the ones that were choking him and relaxed into the contact. He couldn't speak past the suffocating grip at his neck, but he could think and feel and project, and these he did with all his remaining power. The fact that his shields were in tatters actually helped, as there was nothing to hold back what he needed to feel.

_Heero, I know you're in there. I know you are. Heero, come back to us. You swore to fight beside me, to protect me, to let me protect you. You're my friend, my brother. You're a part of me, a part of all of us. The ZERO System can't take that away. You must fight your way back to the surface, Heero. You are not ZERO. Hear my heart and come back to me._

It wasn't words – his empathy had never worked in words. But he cycled through the feelings as strongly as he could. And as he kept up the plea and warmth, he sought inside Heero as well. He knew Heero's soul as well as he knew Trowa's. He had felt him die once, had felt him scream in pain many times. He followed the pain and screaming he found within and looked for the tiny whisper of the real Heero beneath it all. ZERO had twisted his mind, but Heero's soul would still be whole wherever it had gone.

Quatre felt the lack of air becoming a problem, and he focused harder. He couldn't give up. Heero had been there for him so many times. He loved him better than a brother, like another part of himself. Quatre would rather have died than failed to bring Heero back to himself. He would never give up, even if it meant Heero would strangle him for real before he succeeded.

Quatre allowed his eyes to slide closed. He felt everything fall away, focusing entirely on Heero. He remembered the pain and confusion ZERO had caused in himself, and he pushed it aside in Heero's mind as though it were merely a door blocking his way. It was like walking in a house of mirrors, each reflecting possibilities, hallucinations, versions of reality. Lost here, Heero might not find his way out without help. But Quatre knew what was real and what was illusion.

And then, there in the darkest shadows, he found a tiny point of light.

All of Quatre's love and trust and loyalty and that impossible feeling of belonging surged out of him to grasp and hold that point of light, to shield it and strengthen it. Like breathing a tiny flame brighter, Quatre gave hope and certainty to something lost in a world that had neither. And with every passing instant, the brighter that tiny speck became, the more the shadows and illusions thinned around them.

Then, all at once, Heero emerged from the chaos, wholly himself.

Heero felt his hands ache with the strain of something, and he opened his eyes to meet Quatre's wide-eyed look. Everything after being hooked into ZERO was a blur, but there was no denying the signature warmth in his heart. Whatever he'd done, wherever he'd gone, Quatre had brought him back.

Quatre managed a smile before his eyes started to dull and Heero at last realized he was squeezing the life out of him.

"Katoru!" he hissed, his hands immediately releasing him and instead catching him as Quatre overbalanced and tipped forward. "Katoru, you _baka_. Why did you let me do that?"

"You needed my help, and I needed you to hold still long enough to give it," he managed wheezily. "I'm really all right, though. I've held my breath a lot longer than that before."

Heero snorted at that and took the blond firmly by the shoulders, settling him against the wall at his side where he could tuck Quatre under one arm against him. Only then did he notice the cell and that they were not alone, and the death glare he sent at the others would have withered anyone who didn't also see him gripping Quatre almost reflexively.

"Good thing you let go when you did, Hee-chan," Duo said a little too airily, "or I was about to have to make a difficult decision."

"If it happens again, do what you have to," Heero confirmed nonchalantly, meeting Duo's intense eyes with solidness; he was completely serious. Then he turned to Quatre. "Did you overdo it?" he asked.

"No. You weren't too far gone. And you've used the system before, though not this one. Just give me a few minutes and I'll be fine." Quatre's breathing was still suspect, but Heero knew that he was hearing as much of a real answer as he ever would. Quatre had a funny way of telling enough truth to be believed without actually revealing everything.

"Are you both all right now?" Hadji asked, bravely daring to intrude on the pilots' privacy.

"Fine," Heero said shortly, glaring again at the Indian.

"Heero," Quatre admonished. Then, "Yes. It's…something of a knack I have now. For finding a lost mind and restoring it. ZERO is not kind to anyone, and it's not easy to come back from it. The longer you're there and the more damage it does, the harder to pull you out. Heero was only plugged in for a few minutes."

"And they're going to put us all in it?" Jonny asked.

"Not if I can help it," Heero snarled, one arm tightening unconsciously about Quatre's shoulders.

"Agreed," Duo put in. "So, now that we're all together..."

The door opened again and several of Rage's men charged in. One of them had an arm around Jonny's neck before pilots could move to prevent him.

"He said the blond one, yeah?"

"Yeah."

And they dragged Jonny out of the cell, again slamming the door.

"No!" Hadji couldn't help but push to the door and pound on it. "Don't! Jonny!"

"Calm down," Heero's voice cracked like a whip. "You can't do anything if you lose your composure."

"Well, we've got the Gundam team now. We could try to break out and go get him," Duo suggested.

"It's a bad idea," Heero replied. At the wide-eyed surprise, he continued, "This ZERO System is different from ours in a lot of ways. You can't just pull somebody out by cutting the wires or taking off the helmet. You have to deactivate it properly. ZERO showed me what it can do to the brain if it's still running the program and a person is disconnected. It's been redesigned to ensure total control of the user, and when it loses that control, it will destroy the user rather than let him be extracted by force."

"So you're saying we need to wait for them to pull him out themselves and then flee when we are once again together," Hadji concluded.

"Exactly."

"But what if he's...?" he trailed off.

"If he comes back like me when I came out of ZERO, we can handle him. He won't be as dangerous as Heero was," Duo said. "And that'll give Heero and Quatre some time to recover."

"But to leave him in that thing, to know what it will do to his mind," Hadji gulped and turned away. His heart would not calm, no matter how he tried force it to.

"I know," Quatre said softly from where he was still half-pinned by Heero. "Believe me, my friend, I know. But trust him, Hadji. Trust him to endure. We'll be able to save him once he is out of ZERO. From what Heero's said, I'm not sure we can save him before."

They settled down to wait.


	14. Behind Enemy Lines

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No ownership here. Sorry. Just some adventures and danger and angst and all that jazz.
> 
> Enjoy!

"Rashid says he and the Maganacs will be on L2 in three or four hours," Trowa said, not looking up. "He's also mad, mostly at Quatre. Probably a little at me, too."

"He can't possibly blame you for what's happened," Dr Quest said kindly.

"He doesn't. But Rashid and the Maganacs would do anything to protect Quatre. _Anything_. Even my life is expendable if it came down to it. Of course, they wouldn't risk me because it would hurt Quatre. But Rashid feels like he failed and because I promised to help him, I'm part of the reason for his failure."

"Three or four hours to wait plus another hour to get back is a long time," Race said. "What can we do in the meantime?"

"We rest," Wufei said, coming back into the cabin having docked the New Jersey. "Barton, is the usual place ready for us?"

"Quatre arranged everything before we left, including food and supplies," he said, and his voice was almost dead it was so flat and still.

"You expect us to sleep when our friends are back there?" Jessie demanded.

"A soldier sleeps when he can, Ponchita," Race said gently. "And since it's near to dawn according to our internal clocks, we need to take advantage of it. We can't help them if we aren't rested."

"That's true," Benton conceded. "If we attempt to sleep until your friends arrive, we'll have the ride back to that place to make a plan." Benton looked at the Preventers agent. "Wufei? Something is bothering you."

"There's no point in speculation. We have enough to do," he brushed off the man and made to exit the shuttle.

"Wufei," Trowa's voice stopped him. "It won't happen again."

"It better not, Barton," he replied without turning around. "None of us would survive it this time."

And without another word he made his way to the hangar to exchange some quick words with Howard before waiting impatiently for the others to catch up.

"Trowa?" Jessie asked. But he shook his head.

"Not now. Later. If it matters. Come on." He refused to meet anyone's eyes and followed where Wufei had gone.

"Sometimes I think these guys couldn't find a straight answer with both hands and a flashlight," Race grumbled. "And I hate it as much as anybody, but they're right. We need to rest so we can go after the others. We'll get them back," and he tried to smile encouragingly. But Race didn't actually know if he was trying to comfort his daughter, his closest friend, or himself, and it fell rather flat.

"It'll be all right," Dr Quest said unexpectedly.

"What makes you say that?" Jessie turned to him. She had Bandit in her arms and was holding him a little tightly. He was perceptive enough to know something was wrong and licked her chin comfortingly.

"Those young men are remarkable. They survived the Eve wars. Jonny and Hadji are remarkable too. Between them, they'll take care of each other. One terrorist isn't going to be enough to beat them."

"Let's hope you're right," Race said.

But something in the back of his mind was not so sure.

 

-==OOO==-

 

Jonny was brave, and he knew that, but there was no denying the apprehension he felt when the pair of goons all but threw him into the seat that had done so much damage to Heero. He fought them, and they strapped him to it with thick, wide straps that pinned his arms and legs and chest in place.

"Let me go!" he demanded. He knew it probably wouldn't do much, but it was worth a try.

No one answered him. A moment later, he felt the helmet lowered onto his head and sucked in a breath in quick fear.

And let it out in a scream.

The images flew before him as the program crawled around in his mind like spiders poured inside his skull. Battles, deaths, fires, repulsive and gory and so real he could taste the blood on his tongue. The images shifted and showed him his family, but twisted horribly. His father with his head mostly removed, dangling by wet bits of flesh from his neck. Jessie, a rocket-launcher in her hands as she blew up the high school they attended together, watching their teachers and friends burn in the explosion. Hadji, eagerly licking blood from the cheek of a dead child while the knife in his hands was red and sticky with it. Race burning in a fire that ate the flesh from his bones.

There were so many ways of achieving these things. So many paths to destruction and fire and death. The system prowled around within him, and he felt as though his hands should want to move to the controls, but somehow he was frozen. All he could do was scream. Rage's voice, indistinct, sounded far away.

Then the images faded, but Jonny kept screaming. His mind was awash in blood. His soul buried in suffering. And when he opened his eyes, all he could see was Death itself.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"They're coming," Quatre warned. He'd been uncharacteristically quiet while they'd speculated on how to escape, but now he rose and moved to the door.

"Cat, what...?" Duo began.

"Quatre!" Heero flashed to his feet in alarm at the sad, regretful expression on the blond's face. He started forward, but the door opened violently.

"You! You're the one he wanted," said a guard, roughly gripping Quatre by the collar.

"I know," he said resignedly.

Duo began to charge the door with speed, Heero at his elbow, but one of the armed men threw a body at them and they caught it, losing the moment. Even as fast as he was, Heero still couldn't drop Jonny quick enough to reach the door before Quatre had disappeared behind it.

" _Kuso_!" he pounded the wall with his fist.

"Jonny! Jonny, can you hear me?" Hadji asked, carefully him over.

"Ha...Hadji?"

"I'm here, my friend. You are safe." Hadji was horrified by the tears that tracked down Jonny's face and the trembling of his body. The irrepressible Jonny Quest, brought so low. It was unthinkable.

"It...I can't..." he turned away. Hadji tightened his arms about him and held on. If he had been an empath like Quatre he knew he could have eased Jonny's suffering. Instead he simply tried to be the comfort he knew his brother needed. Jonny buried his face in Hadji's arm and shuddered for a few minutes before he started to gulp in a more steady breath.

"Let it go, Jonny," Hadji said softly. "Your mind will help you. Forget the images that haunt you. Let them go from you, that you be whole once more."

"I...okay, Hadj," he gulped. "Sorry."

"Do not apologize. What you have been through, it breaks every man. You have survived and your mind is your own. That is enough." He held onto Jonny and rubbed circles on his back until the worst of the shaking seemed to end. Jonny was not all right, not by a long shot, but he would not get any worse, not with Hadji there to drive away whatever he could.

"Heero, what is Quatre doing?" Duo asked, turning away from them. "It's like he wanted them to grab him.

"He did. I should have realized sooner."

"Why?"

"Because Quatre thinks he can beat the ZERO System," Heero said, pounding the wall again. "He realized that ZERO is hooked into this whole base, every part of it. If he can take control of it, he'll be able to stop Rage."

"Can he actually do that?" Hadji asked. "I mean, what it did to you and Jonny..."

"If anybody can, it's Cat," Duo hung his head. "ZERO scared me so bad I nearly lost it, and Heero learned to use it eventually, but Cat actually beat the system. He got so good with it he didn't need it anymore."

"I could use ZERO and keep myself sane," Heero added. "Quatre mastered it."

"So maybe we just need to trust him," Hadji said.

"Maybe."

But Heero turned to the door and stared at it as if he could break it with just his will. And if he had thought it would have helped, he would have tried. But he knew interfering in Quatre's plan now might be more dangerous than what Quatre intended to do, so he tried to wait.

But he would not wait for long.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"So far, so good," Quatre thought to himself. He put up a token resistance, but ultimately he allowed himself to be led back to the ZERO cockpit.

As they strapped him in, he fought the instinct to panic. Yes, this was a ZERO System that was probably worse than the one he'd known, but Heero had helped him prove he could handle it in the war and he hadn't been afraid of it since. He was in control now. This time he had a very clear idea of who his enemy was and who his allies were, and he wouldn't lose that. ZERO couldn't make him forget the people he loved this time. If he could hold on just long enough, he could force ZERO to help him save the others and put an end to Rage's plan. It was worth the risk. It was worth more than his own life to keep Rage from raining down the destruction he planned.

The helmet came down and Quatre braced himself.

The initial incursion of the system was bad, worse than the first had been years ago by a thousand times. But Quatre had steadied himself and he had come with an idea of what to expect. ZERO painted horrific pictures of death and betrayal and depravity, but Quatre had a worse one in his own memory, and that allowed him to maintain his balance. What could ZERO threaten that was more awful than the memory of shooting Trowa, after all?

Heero had always talked to ZERO, as if it could hear him. Quatre hadn't usually, but this time he guessed it might help, so he focused his thoughts at it instead.

"Your parameters are designed to ensure total victory and bring it about in the best way possible for all variables," he fought to make clear. "Mine is the mind that will choose the definition of total victory. And I have made my choice."

Like a window opening, ZERO abruptly reset and became more like the program Quatre remembered as he reworked the system's operations with his own will. He could see everything. He could see the perfect angles of attack against all the colony clusters and the cities of the Earth. He could see the assets and strategies of Ezekiel Rage and his followers. And he could also see their weaknesses and the gaps in their defenses.

"I have made my choice," Quatre doubled his concentration. "Now I'm going to act."

Knowing he would only have moments before his actions might be noticed and the terrorists would put a stop to it, Quatre initiated a series of cascading programs, each coded to the previous, the whole plan crystal clear in his mind. He would release his friends and ensure that they had a ready escape. Then he would disarm all the weapons and lock down the dangerous substances on the base. He could even lock down portions of the complex, trapping Rage and his men in a cage of their own creation. It was simple. Easy, even.

Quatre had just finished setting in place the first process to help his friends and arrange for their transport when a pain shot through him. What was it? Impossible to tell – there was no pain in the pure logic of strategy. Irrelevant, then. He was just beginning to communicate his intentions to his friends via the comm system, also easily, effortlessly hacked into by ZERO, when something changed.

A hot hand fell on the back of his neck and Quatre's mind unraveled.

 

-==OOO==-

 

They had only barely opened the doors to what appeared to be a series of bedrooms after halfheartedly consuming some food when the plate in Trowa's hands slipped from his grip and shattered even as he wavered.

"Trowa!" Jessie started to move, but Race was quicker. He caught the young man around the waist as Trowa sank suddenly the floor.

"What's wrong?" Dr Quest rushed over.

"It's...it's Quatre..." Trowa gasped.

Quatre had long since learned to shield, and whenever there was danger of any sort he always instinctively called upon those shields, as the bond between them was never louder than when one of them was afraid or hurt. Trowa had been feeling only trickles of things from Quatre from the moment they'd separated in spite of the distance – a shock of fear here, a wash of relief there, a stab of determination – but now it was as though Quatre's shields had been totally washed away and his innate powers overwhelmed and amplified.

Trowa slammed his eyes shut, knowing they were streaming with tears. Somewhere Quatre was crying. Somewhere Quatre was in pain. Somewhere Quatre was being inundated by rage and hate and fury and he was being destroyed under the onslaught. And deep beneath all of it, Quatre was utterly terrified. Not for himself, though he couldn't help but know that his heart would not emerge from that hate unscathed; no, he was afraid to his bones for the people he loved.

Quatre's soul was screaming in agony.

Trowa could only echo it.

" _NOOO!_ "

"Move!" came a new voice. Wufei appeared and roughly pushed himself into the circle that had gathered. "Barton! Barton, you've got to listen to me!"

"What's happening?" Race asked.

"His bond with Winner. He's experiencing the echoes of whatever Winner is feeling." Wufei didn't even look up, instead tightening his grasp on Trowa's shoulders.

Given that Trowa was boneless in Race's arms, clutching his chest and screaming, crying tears that couldn't come fast enough, that preexisting amount of worry escalated into an all-out panic for Benton, Race, and Jessie. If Quatre was suffering so terribly, what could that mean for the others? And what did this mean for Quatre himself?

"Trowa," and Wufei's voice was masterfully calm. "You have to block him. You can't be pulled in or we'll lose you and you won't be able to help him. Trowa, do you hear me?"

The screaming cut off for an instant and Trowa's chest hitched as he managed a nod and bit his jaws down on the shout that was trying to break from him.

"Good. I need you to breathe. Breath in with me. Come on. That's it. Now let it out. Slowly. Good." Wufei leaned in closer until their foreheads almost touched. His words took on a cadence not totally unlike one that a hypnotist might use to bring about a trance. "Focus on being here. Focus on my voice and on your breathing. Let your mind be guided. Now, I know you don't want to, but you have to do this. Trowa, you have to step inside Heavyarms."

Trowa's breath came out of him in a whoosh as though he'd been punched.

"I know. But it's the only way. Trowa, you have to trust me. Close yourself in Heavyarms. You won't be alone, I'll be right here."

Wufei spoke evenly and firmly as he talked him through the process, knowing that sympathy would only make what he was asking Trowa to do harder. To take your mind and enclose it in the form of something that had defined you, something you used to commit terrible crimes and put at risk your own humanity, it was not an easy thing. But Wufei also knew that he had to help Trowa shield completely and rapidly or risk having whatever else Quatre was about to experience leak over as well. Wufei needed the remaining pilot functional if they were going to rescue the others, and he didn't have time to teach Trowa the nuances of building and holding a barrier against empathic input; he needed something that Trowa could use instinctively. It was the quickest and readiest shield he could think of that would work on an untrained mind.

Trowa took a deep breath and forced his thoughts to obey Wufei's orders. He visualized Heavyarms, every panel, every wire. He had known that Gundam better than anything, could name every component and bullet-casing of it. He saw the hatch in the chest open, saw the cool darkness within, and balked. But Quatre was screaming and he had to do whatever it would take to be able to save him.

_Heavyarms. You helped me protect my friends before. Please lend me your strength once more._

Without another thought, Trowa envisioned himself entering the cockpit and closing the hatch.

Unlike with the real Gundam, he wasn't in a seat surrounded by screens and instrument panels that dealt death. Instead it was just dark and cool and surprisingly empty. He could still feel Quatre's suffering somewhere, but it was deeply muted, as though being transmitted from far away on a weak signal. The familiarity of Heavyarms settled around him.

"Okay, Barton. I need you to open your eyes. You need to keep your emotions locked in Heavyarms until this is over. But you have to come back now."

Wufei watched carefully as Trowa's eyes slowly opened. As soon as Trowa had accepted his solution, he'd calmed almost completely, but it was eerie. The green eyes that met his were fogged as though he were drugged. It reminded Wufei of when he'd encountered a Trowa with no memories. The soul was still there, but it was not in his eyes. The Chinese agent would have regretted having to essentially force Trowa to cut himself off from his emotions and his true self, but there was no other choice and regretting that which was necessary was foolish at best and dangerous at the moment.

"Can you think clearly now?" he asked.

"Yes," Trowa nodded. His voice was strangely stilted. Then, "Thank you, Wufei."

"Given what you've just experienced, I think this means we have to rescue them now, rather than waiting for backup. The Maganacs won't be here soon enough, it seems."

"We'll do whatever you say," Race said firmly. "We're coming with you."

"Yes, you are. We might need more hands," Wufei nodded. "Come on. The ship should be refueled."

And they hastily scooped up the packs and flight-suits they'd let fall less than an hour prior and ran for the hangar.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Heero?" Duo asked. The Japanese young man had gripped his chest in a motion that was all too familiar – Quatre did it whenever his space heart was in pain.

"It's Quatre. Something's gone wrong. He was okay and now..."

But the next moment, the door opened. Duo, ready for the worst and tired of being in this cell and unable to help, prepared to attack, but there was no one there.

"It's Quatre," Jonny said, his voice almost steady and yet really not. "It has to be."

"Then let's go get him." Duo started down the corridor in the correct direction, but the comm on his wrist began to emit a beeping pattern.

"Wait."

Heero listened to the beeps, his face growing darker and more granite-like as the seconds passed. When the sequence repeated, he slammed a fist into the wall. Duo looked pale.

"Code?" Hadji asked.

"Yeah," Duo said. "It's Cat. He said he had gotten us a way off this rock, and he was getting ready to take down the whole thing, but it cut off and..."

"And now he's been compromised," Heero said tightly. "I can feel it."

"It has to be Rage," Hadji said. "Quatre said he couldn't defend against him and it caused a great imbalance in his shields after even a few moments of exposure."

"So we've got one Cat, who can control the ZERO System completely, and plugged into Rage's crazy? Not good," Duo growled.

"Come on," Heero said, turning and moving the other way down the corridor.

"But where are we going?" Hadji asked.

"Quatre set up a way for us to escape before he was compromised. We'll only have a little time before Rage and ZERO force him to eliminate that option. The four of us can't fight Rage and ZERO and however many missiles Quatre now has at his disposal. We'll be lucky to get out alive at all. He can cut off the air to this corridor or this level any time he wants."

"But he wouldn't!" Jonny protested, a little wildly. "He's your friend."

"Our Quatre's not in control anymore," Heero snapped and the bitterness was thick in his voice. "And I'm not enough to call him out of ZERO. If I was, I'd have done it by now."

It was the only confession they would ever get that Heero's heart was screaming as badly as the fury in his eyes.

"Trowa," Duo breathed. "Trowa can pull him out."

"So we must leave Quatre here and regroup with the others so that we might launch a proper offensive against ZERO and Rage and release Quatre at the same time," Hadji summed it up.

"Exactly. So move. Quatre's last conscious desire was to get us to safety. We cannot let him down."

"Hey, Heero," Duo said cautiously as they followed the map Quatre had sent to their comms. It seemed to lead to another little-used hangar that had a working craft in it of some kind.

"Hn."

"I wasn't there, but I know the deal. Do you think...?"

"That's why we need Trowa," Heero replied.

"What is it?" Hadji asked. The ex-pilots exchanged an intense look, but Heero raised one shoulder and Duo nodded, a decision having been reached. The braided pilot began to explain as they moved swiftly along the route Quatre had communicated.

"During the Eve wars, before Cat got ZERO under control, he did a lot of bad things. Made the rest of us look like innocents for a while. He almost killed Trowa. He would have done it, too, except that Trowa's too stubborn to die. Quatre won the war by leading us because he was better than ZERO in the end. And he still is. But if ZERO is using Cat and not the other way around, there's no telling what he'll do this time. He can beat us all, just like he did in the game on the Strataquest, if he tries."

They walked in silence after that. The hangar they located proved to be more of a maintenance outpost, but it did have a small craft more useful for moving around the outside of the mining complex than getting to a colony. Still, it was better than nothing, and small enough that ZERO might not recognize it as a threat.

"Can you fly this heap of garbage?" Jonny asked as they climbed aboard.

"Fly, yeah," Duo said. "Assuming she flies at all."

"I'll pilot," Heero said. "Get back there and keep it together."

Duo nodded and moved to dig into the parts of the engines he could reach from inside, pulling out wires and fitting parts back together. Jonny pitched in – he was no engineer, but he knew his way around the basics, and he saw the logic in wanting to help to make their escape go faster. And anything to focus on was better than giving himself the time to think and _remember_.

"Heero," Hadji said gently, staying out of the pilot's way but not backing down from the glare levied at him as he followed him towards the pilot's seat, "is this really right? To leave him here?"

"We have no choice. I can't shut down this version of ZERO. We'll need Dr Quest for that. And I can't get through to Quatre. We need Trowa for that. We have to fight the right fight with the right weapons."

"You don't know that you can't reach him," Hadji pointed out. "Quatre's empathy works better with touch. We could go back there and..."

"And what? The four of us hold off Rage and all his men while the complex itself tries to kill us so I can get to him?" Now legitimate fury was radiating off him. "I'm a soldier. If I wanted to die, I'd try it. If Rage weren't manipulating Quatre's emotions, it might even work."

He turned blazing eyes on Hadji.

"Why can't you just accept that this is more than we can do alone? We have no choice but to go get help."

"I can and do accept it, Heero," Hadji said gently. "It is you who does not."

"Sit down and stay quiet or I will kill you," Heero's eyes blazed with all the truth he could not admit that Hadji had spoken.

But Hadji knew his work was done. He took a seat and turned his thoughts towards the one they were leaving to torment and pain.

"Please be strong, my friend. You have much to live for and much waiting for your return. I will do my best to hold together the pieces of those you love, but I cannot do it for long. Only you know how to be what they need. Please do not lose yourself, for none of us know how to find you if you go beyond our reach." He closed his eyes and offered a prayer to whatever or whoever in the universe might be listening.

"May your god protect you until your friends can take up that duty once more."


	15. Casualties

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Interestingly, portions of this chapter were among the earliest I ever wrote on this story. It's funny the things that come to mind and how you build backwards and forwards to craft a full tale.
> 
> Enjoy!

"We're going to have to go back to L2," Wufei growled. Trowa pulled the shuttle to one side as a small blast rocked their starboard side. "We're an easy target and this ship isn't shielded appropriately. It's got weapons, but they won't be enough for us to cut through."

He looked at Trowa. "You know I don't like it, Barton. But we won't help them if we get killed. Back us off."

"There's something coming up on us," Race reported.

Even though the New Jersey was quite small, the five of them had all managed to squeeze into the cockpit. Trowa banked the shuttle away from the threat of the missiles coming from Rage's base, but within rage of the object on its sensors.

"What is it?" Dr Quest asked.

"It looks...like some kind of transport?" Jessie's voice was colored with surprise. "Coming towards us from the terrorist base!"

"Zero One to Zero Five. Zero One to Zero Five. Do you copy?"

All five jumped as the comms on their wrists came to life with Heero's voice.

"Zero Five here. Zero One, status?" Wufei demanded.

"This thing is low on fuel. Can you tow us back to L2?"

"Affirmative. Zero One, _what happened_?"

"Zero Four arranged for our escape prior to being compromised by Rage and the ZERO System." Heero's voice was devoid of anything – not even a hint of reaction leaked through.

"We'll get you back to L2," Race found himself saying. A look over to Trowa and Wufei told him that neither felt up to taking command at that moment. Trowa's face was closed and shuttered and empty. Wufei's jaw was working and Race guessed he was moments away from an outburst. Even those who had piloted Gundams could be shaken, and they had been.

Attaching a tether-line to the bucket of bolts that had managed to fly so far was the work of very few minutes. Nobody said anything other than the necessary words to ensure the line was attached, and Trowa broke out of his stupor long enough to turn the New Jersey back to L2. In less than an hour they were once again in the hangar.

"Jonny! Hadji!" Benton couldn't help but cry out joyfully when his boys climbed out of the transport. He opened his arms and pulled Jonny close for a moment, then reached to draw in Hadji. "Are you all right?"

"We'll be fine, Dr Quest," was Hadji's quick answer. The uncharacteristic silence on Jonny's end, however, drew his father's attention.

Jonny was paler than usual, and there were dark shadows under his eyes. He'd also been crying, and it didn't take being a father to see it. But he held himself rigidly, holding out against whatever had upset him to his core. He wouldn't quite meet Benton's eyes, though, and he seemed as if he didn't know whether he wanted to pull away from the warmth of the embrace or dive into it more fully. Bandit, having been left with Howard as temporary dog-sitter, had raced to his favorite person and was yipping happily, breaking up the strange echoing silence of the hangar. Jonny wordlessly gathered the pup up in his arms and held him tightly.

"Trowa."

Duo's voice was impossibly sad and drew their attention even over the dog's noise. The four pilots were standing together, and the fact that one was missing was palpable, obvious. There was a hole in the very way they stood where one more ought to have been. Trowa was holding perfectly still, Wufei near to his shoulder. Duo and Heero faced them, and Duo hung his head.

"He's in ZERO."

"I know."

"And Rage has figured out that he can manipulate Quatre," Heero said softly.

"I know."

"God, Trowa, say something!" Duo exploded. "Don't do your silent-type act now!" He sounded near-hysterical.

"I understand it," Heero looked at his feet.

"No, you don't."

"Not the way you do, 'cause none of us can," Duo defended Heero, "but you can't say it doesn't hurt, okay! We all hate it. And we're gonna get him back. We are." He clenched his hands. "We shouldn't have left him there."

"Was it tactically sound?" Wufei spoke for the first time. "To leave him there. Was it a sound plan?"

"It was Quatre's plan," Heero answered.

"Quatre doesn't think about himself," Trowa finally looked at Heero. "You know that."

"We would all have been killed for nothing."

"I know that. He would have tried anyway." Trowa's cold voice was only barely remonstrating.

"Yes, he would have."

"What do you feel?" Trowa asked, but not so softly that a tremor of something couldn't be heard.

"He's...still there," Heero said slowly. "I can tell he's alive. But everything else is...pain."

"We're going after him," Wufei said with steel in his voice. "We _will_ bring him back."

"I couldn't save him from ZERO," and Heero's words rang with regret and self-recrimination. "I knew it. But I will help you if I can."

"Good. Because I think you'll both be needed to pull him out. If it can be done at all," Wufei met their eyes. "I just don't know how yet."

Jessie and Race had appeared beside the other three and Jessie wordlessly hugged Jonny, then Hadji. Race looked critically at the both of them, and breathed a relieved sigh that they were all right. Scarred and pushed beyond what any boys should have to face, yes, but all right. As for Trowa and Heero, and even Wufei and Duo, he wasn't so sure. And Quatre...he didn't want to guess.

"If Quatre is lost to them," Hadji said quietly enough for only his family to hear, "I believe we will lose them all."

And looking at Duo's slumped form, caught between despair and a homicidal fury; looking at Heero's lostness even as his iron control tried to hold him together; looking at Wufei's barely-concealed rage and acute feelings of failure; looking at Trowa who was almost a parody of himself, locked in something so cold and distant and inhuman it was more frightening than if he'd been screaming – they knew he was right.

 

-==OOO==-

 

There were still two hours before the arrival of Rashid and the Maganacs, and again everyone retreated to the arranged rooms, ostensibly to try to rest. But Hadji couldn't even begin to think about sleep, and neither could anyone else. He'd explained to the others what they'd been through, since Jonny didn't feel up to it, and he'd left his adopted brother with Dr Quest and Race, both of whom had more experience coping with horror. Jessie had found herself situated between Heero and Wufei and was working to help them interpret Dr Quest's notes so they would know as much as could be known about ZERO. Trowa and Duo were...somewhere. He wasn't even sure where they had gone.

Hadji closed the door softly behind him and settled on the floor. His mind was in such disarray. If he could not sleep, he would try to prepare himself for what must come next.

He settled into meditation almost easily, breathing himself into that place in his mind that was calm. The ocean roared against the rocks below, and the fires seemed too bright to be lit on simple candles, but this Hadji could handle. He took a bit of time to enforce order and quiet, to bring the evidence of his inner tempest under control again.

But as he was reaching for an hourglass to cast himself into the beyond of wisdom, he felt the floor crack open beneath him. And through the rift there, he heard what could only be Quatre's voice. Shouting in anger and pain.

"Quatre!" he shouted into the abyss. "Quatre!"

Here in his mind, halfway into the astral plane, Hadji realized he might not be as alone as he thought. He reached out, seeking the soul he had found here once before. The lighthouse vanished and he floated in dark emptiness, reaching.

"Quatre! Can you hear me! Quatre!"

Something flashed in the dark and Hadji threw himself with all his power towards it, and he blinked at the brightness that surrounded him.

"Hadji."

"Quatre!" Hadji's vision cleared and he found himself in an endless desert with Quatre looking just like himself before him. He'd feared to find the monster of the ZERO, but instead this was his friend. "What happened?"

"I'm not entirely sure. If I had to guess, I'd say you found me somehow, and it's just that my heart chose the place this time. You were calling me."

"Where are we?"

"The desert is the best proving ground there ever was. Within this place there are no lies, no compromises. Only the strong could truly make such a home. Only the wise could make things grow here." Quatre smiled and added, "My father always said that. When I'm lost, I always start from here. What surprises me is that I'm talking to you. The last thing I remember is ZERO."

"Yes. You...you saved us, got us out. But you're still there, still plugged into ZERO. Are you all right?"

"I don't think so. Because if I'm here with you, then there's no telling what part of me is left to command that program, but it probably isn't what you'd want to have in charge. Especially if Rage is influencing my emotions directly. I think I remember him trying to change me. All of us have a little madness in us. Mine is very, very destructive. If Rage really lets me go, pushes me to the limit of my control..."

"I know. Duo told me."

"You've got to put a stop to it. Tell them, Hadji. Tell Heero to lead them and tell them to do whatever it takes to destroy the ZERO System. You can't let me be the cause of more death."

"Don't give up. They're working on a plan. They'll find a way of bringing you out safely before you do any harm."

"No, Hadji. It's not enough. The system doesn't work the way it used to. They won't be able to talk me out of ZERO this time. It's too strong and I'm in too deep. You have to have a way of stopping me. And I have an idea."

Quatre's eyes gleamed almost pleadingly as he explained his plan. Hadji felt himself growing colder and more troubled with every word.

"No. I refuse. I will not use my gifts in this way, my friend."

"Yes you will. You have to. Hadji, I'm asking you for this. If it comes down to it, if it is my life or the lives of hundreds of thousands of people, you have to make the choice. No one else can do it. Even Heero and Trowa and Duo and Wufei would agree with you."

"Perhaps. But it is my conscience you are depending upon, and I cannot agree."

"Hadji, if you don't do this, the next life I take may be Jonny's or Jessie's. Or Race's. Or Dr Quest's. Please, please don't let me make an orphan out of any of my friends."

Hadji hadn't known he could shed tears in a place like this, but his eyes filled with them as he nodded slowly at the one argument he could not refute.

"All right."

 

-==OOO==-

 

Quatre came back to himself fuzzily and in pieces. It took him rather a lot of time to realize that he was no longer wearing the ZERO helmet, and that the wash of alien hate and fury was muted. The reason it took so long was the next thing he realized – he'd been very drugged. He wondered if the vision of Hadji was a dream or if it had really happened. For a few moments, anyway, he must have been freed of both Rage and ZERO. He could only hope that vision had been more than a lovely illusion.

"We thought it a wise precaution. Only the foolish leave a lion untamed in their midst."

Ezekiel Rage appeared in front of him, standing beside the ZERO cockpit. His grotesque face was twisted in a bright grin and he still radiated sheer poison.

"What...did you...?" Quatre tried. But his tongue felt like a sock.

"You are the chosen one prophesied in the Book of Rage. 'And he shall come with the power of fire and the arrows of death. And he shall wield them all and be bidden by Rage and he shall smite the blackness from the skies.' So sayeth the Book of Rage."

He moved and reached a hand out. Quatre, even drugged to near immobility, jerked a little in the restraints and tried to evade the touch.

"Of all those who have sat upon the throne, none could do so and live. You even dared to try to be king. But that crown is mine, not yours. You are simply the instrument by which my goals shall be achieved."

"He caught me manipulating ZERO," Quatre realized to himself. "He must have a fail-safe in it that let him know when I had undermined the original program's intent."

"Our first encounter showed me the way of truth. You are a channel through which my desires become reality. Your mind and soul become mine when you are here, and through you, look at what I can achieve!"

He gestured to something and Quatre wrenched his eyes upwards. Spread across half the wall of the room was a large, detailed map. It contained both the Earth and the colony clusters, all meticulously marked. And there were also Preventers installations out there, flagged in red. But, to Quatre's grateful relief, a few key locations were missing, locations he knew of but apparently had not been compromised by ZERO's influence over his thoughts.

Rage hit a button and suddenly the screen lit up with trajectories. From the one tiny spot marked as their location, dozens of streams of light rained across the map marking out the flight-paths of the missiles Rage had acquired. Quatre watched, horrified, as they struck in precisely the right places at the right times to ensure the greatest amount of destruction without even Preventers being able to scramble in time. Quatre estimated the cost of human life in the millions within the first hour.

"Such efficiency! Such elegance! And it was born there," he pointed to Quatre's forehead. "You are the sword by which we shall cut down the world!"

"No..." he rasped.

"Not yet, little one. Even you must rest. ZERO knows your strengths and your weaknesses. For a few hours you shall sleep. And when you wake, refreshed and ready, you will be my arm and my will and together all of humanity will burn!"

The drug in his system was starting to pull him under in a different way from what ZERO had done and Quatre fought it desperately. He knew the next time he woke he'd be back in ZERO, and poised to do incalculable harm to innocent people. Whatever Rage had given him was strong enough to take him out, so maybe it would impair him in ZERO, too, but if it didn't, he couldn't...he couldn't...

His last conscious thought was to realize that he couldn't feel Trowa's heart at all.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"I've informed Lady Une as to the situation," Wufei said heavily. He looked around the room. Duo and Trowa and Heero all looked at him from under hooded eyes. The Quests were tense, but collected. Rashid was the only one signaling his distress in the set of his jaw. The other Maganacs were in the hangar below, awaiting orders. Wufei didn't need Quatre's space heart to feel the anger and protectiveness washing through the area.

"And what did she say?" Duo asked.

"She understands the risk. If Winner's suspicion is correct, that Rage is going to use ZERO to launch an attack of that magnitude, then we are facing a threat greater than anything since Libra's descent in the wars. She is prepared to do whatever it takes to stop him."

"We will not accept help from Preventers." Heero's voice brokered no argument.

"But why?" Benton asked. "They can help us prevent so many deaths."

"It's kind of in their job description," Race quipped, though there was no humor in his tone.

"The Preventers are sworn to protect the peace for the Earth and the colonies," Wufei said. "They will do whatever it takes to ensure that Rage's plans fail. They will kill Winner to do it."

"But he's an agent too, isn't he?" Jessie asked.

"It won't matter," Heero said staunchly. "They have their orders. Some of them might even know him, have worked with him. But they would kill him to stop him. That's why no Preventers. They won't try to save Quatre if they think they can end things by destroying him."

"But what if that's the only way?" Trowa spoke the question softly, looking straight into Heero's eyes. "What if we can't stop him and save him?"

"If it comes to that, I will kill him myself."

"Heero!" Duo protested.

"If there is no other way, if we cannot prevent him from being Rage's pawn, then yes, I will kill him." Heero stared at Trowa, almost challenging him. "I know Quatre would rather die than be the cause of more deaths."

"That's true," Trowa admitted. And his face didn't change, but his eyes seemed colder.

"Dad, they're serious!" Jonny said, looking hopefully at his father for an answer.

"I know, son. And I would never advocate killing anyone. But Quatre is trapped in a machine that will, if we don't stop it, decimate the Earth and the colonies. It will endanger people everywhere. We cannot let that happen."

"I can't believe you are actually talking about killing my best bud," Duo almost growled. "I mean, this is Quatre we're talking about. He would go to hell for every one of us. And we're going to give up on him like this?"

"There...may be another way," Hadji said slowly, just before a heated reply could fly.

"What are you thinking?" Race asked, jumping on the chance for some other option. Everyone turned to where Hadji stood.

"I...I met Quatre in my meditation. He said much the same of what you've said here, that he would ask that you do whatever is necessary to stop him." He looked at Heero. "He told me to tell Heero to lead you against him, if it came to that, and that he believed you could not 'talk' him out of ZERO this time, that he was too lost in it. And he asked for my help."

"Your help?" Wufei's eyes were sharp and he was obviously thinking very quickly.

"Yes. Quatre believes that I can...somehow...enter his mind and disrupt him, I suppose is the only way to explain it. He believes that I can use my gifts and cause him some kind of empathic disorientation, if only for a few minutes, and that I will be successful where your attempts to appeal only to his consciousness may fail. It may buy you the time to disable ZERO properly."

"Can you really do that?" Duo wanted to know.

"I don't know!" Hadji gestured angrily. "I have never used any of my gifts to invade the mind of another person and cause them harm. I do not even want to _know_ if I can do this. But he made me promise to try. And...perhaps it is a better choice than killing him."

But Hadji looked away anyway, and felt guilt already crashing through him. What Quatre wanted him to do, it was the worst kind of assault. A betrayal of everything Hadji held dear. And there was no telling what side effects it might cause – for all they knew, Hadji could damage his mind, cause him to have a seizure or a stroke. It was impossible to guess.

"Thank you," came a very soft whisper from Trowa. Hadji looked up and almost took a step back at finding himself face-to-face with Trowa, surprised that the acrobat had moved so close without him realizing. "Even if it's just a chance. Thank you for that. It could save his life."

"Quatre is important to all of us," Heero said with his eyes closed. "I would kill him to spare him the fate of dealing death to innocents again, but anything you can do to keep me from having to hurt him...you have to try."

"I will," Hadji said, his resolve firming. They were right – it was the best of a lot of bad options, but at least Quatre might be alive at the end of it so he could apologize. If it tore his heart, he would find a way to mend it later.

"Then here's what we're going to do," Wufei said, straightening his shoulders, suddenly energized. "Yuy, you and Maxwell and Barton plan the attack. Rashid, you'll lead the Maganacs into this fight as well, since we'll need them to breach the perimeter and hold off Rage's men and any attacks from ZERO. Dr Quest, this program is still your responsibility and from what Yuy said, it has certain protocols we'll have to override. Find a way to shut it down. You three," he pointed to Race, Jonny, and Jessie, "will work with him or Yuy or anybody else who requires it. You're all capable and we need all the help we can get."

"And Hadji?" Benton asked.

"After I call Lady Une to give her our plans, he and I are going to talk about exactly what he's going to do. Barton and Yuy may be closest to Winner's empathy, but I'm the only one who knows anything about how it really works. I'm going to teach you to hurt him without killing him."

Decision made, Wufei rose from his seat and went into another room, already pulling out his phone to contact Une. Behind him, Rashid stood and faced the remaining three pilots.

"The Maganac Corps will do whatever is necessary to protect and rescue Master Quatre," he said gravely. "We no longer have our mobile suits, but we can offer something similar."

"What's that?" Duo asked. "I thought all mobile suits were being destroyed after the wars."

"Yes. But certain types of machines are still needed for working in space. WEI uses many such units in their development of minerals from asteroids, and as we have been instrumental in helping Master Quatre rebuild a few colonies, we have access to them. They are not as large and not as powerful, and they lack the weaponry we are accustomed to, but they will manage the trip to the location and they can be quickly retrofitted to be of greater offensive use."

"All our intel says Rage doesn't have mobile suits, so that would give us the advantage," Race nodded. "He does have missiles, though, and you guys would be prime targets."

Rashid actually smiled at this. "Not to fear. We have faced far worse."

"I'll go help the others begin retrofitting the suits," Trowa offered, rising abruptly. His face was still carefully cold and empty. "I'm better as a mechanic than a strategist."

"So are we," Jonny looked to Jessie. "But we don't know anything about weapons, really."

"Help me go get the guns, then," Duo suggested. "I may be strong but even I can't carry crates of the things by myself."

"Where are you even getting them from?" Benton wanted to know. "Beam cannons and such are illegal."

"First of all, most of my friends don't run what you'd call letter-of-the-law type businesses," the braided pilot winked. "And second of all, those weapons are illegal for civilians and for civilian forces. Preventers isn't civilian. Once the boy scout out there signed onto this little game as an agent, we got to open the toy chest."

"Guess that leaves you and me and Rashid to plan," Race turned to Heero.

"I would offer to help you with the program, Dr Quest," Hadji said, "but I do not believe I shall have the time."

"That's all right, Hadji," putting a hand on the young man's shoulder, "because nobody else knows the program well enough. I kept it from you so long, it would take more time to get you up to speed than we have to spare. I can handle this. Though I might come find you, Jessie, if I need another pair of eyes."

"Sure thing, Dr Quest. Just call and I'll drop whatever I'm doing. Maybe on Duo's foot."

At least Rashid stared at the girl, not sure if he should be offended at her callous attitude given the severity of the situation, and some of the others may have as well, but Duo grinned widely with a real smile for the first time since Quatre had been taken away from them in the cell.

"You just try it, Red," he got up in her face. "It'll be the last choice you make for a while."

"You're all talk," she tossed her hair and moved around him for the door, Jonny standing and moving sort of awkwardly in her wake. "Now, are we going to get this done?"

The three disappeared and Rashid looked at Race, who was shaking his head.

"That kid. Sometimes I think she's got more guts than the rest of us put together," he said to nobody in particular.

"That was a kind thing to do," Heero spoke from the corner. "Duo needed that."

"So did Jonny," Hadji added.

Wufei returned and looked at the remaining men. With a glare that very eloquently said "Why aren't you getting to work yet?" he gestured to Hadji and returned to the room.

"Not one to wait, is he?" Benton found a small smile.

"Never. Patience has never been a virtue of Chang Wufei," Rashid said. "Master Quatre says he is not happy if he is not already moving. Today I am grateful for it."

"You should be moving, too, Dr Quest," Heero pointed out.

"Yes, of course. I'll leave the door open, so come in if you need me," he headed towards one of the other sleeping chambers.

"Then we should get planning," Race settled himself at the table, already beginning to study the 3-D model of the complex Heero and Wufei had created and projected.

"Hadji."

"Yes?" he turned in surprise to the intense blue eyes that had crept up on him.

"I failed to protect Katoru," Heero spoke as though the words were being drawn from his chest and pushed into Hadji's mind. "My only choice now is to save him or kill him. You are the best chance to save him. If you fail to do everything in your power, if you hold back, I will never forgive you. He ordered me not to kill you for interfering with him. Now I require you to do just that."

"I don't know what I can do," he replied honestly, feeling the weight of Heero's unspoken worry and noting the use of his particular name for Quatre, "but you have my word I shall do all in my power. Twice now I am in Quatre's debt for my life and the life of my family. As a wise woman once said, 'I will not refuse to do the something I can do.'"

"Wufei will try to push you. You will have to do more than safety may permit. Are you still willing?"

Hadji met Heero's gaze unflinchingly. "Yes."

"Good."

"And will you trust me in this?" Hadji stared at the mask that was Heero trying so hard to keep from giving away anything. "Will you let me do what I must? Even if it goes against your better judgment?"

" _Hai_. Until you fail."

"That is fair then." He held out a hand, and was a little surprised when Heero took it, his grip powerful and his skin just very slightly cool to the touch. "Ensure in your planning that you have a means for me to reach Quatre while undisturbed. I may need time to effect change. And...I do not know what the outcome will be."

"That's what Wufei is for. You will have what you need," Heero released his hand and turned away.

It was a clear dismissal, and Hadji took it.


	16. Groundwork

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thought about putting up two at once again, but decided I'd wait a day. Just because I'm mean.
> 
> Love to all who have given this story a real chance!
> 
> (Still don't own any rights to the teams. Sigh.)
> 
> Enjoy!

"Okay, I don't get it," Jessie said, looking back over her shoulder. The three had already brought two pallets of Preventers weapons down the service lift, and they were dragging the carts back for more. As the elevator doors closed, she finally turned away from where Trowa was sitting calmly on a ladder, fiddling with a suit.

"Don't get what, Ace?" Jonny quirked his eyebrows at her.

"Trowa and Quatre are...they're together, right?"

"The best movies hope they can tell the story of people who are even half as sappy-in-love as they are, yeah. So what's the problem?" Duo asked the question lightly, but there was a warning in his voice.

"Well, Quatre's off, you know, being basically tortured and might at any minute launch a world-ending attack against billions of civilians. To get him back, we're getting ready to break every rule in the ESUN treaty that ensured peace after the wars and we'll have to kill a lot of people. You guys have _already_ killed people for this. And he's just...sitting there." She stared at the door of the elevator. "I don't get it."

"How many times since you've met us have you wondered if there's something wrong with us?" came Duo's unexpected question.

"Well..." she hesitated, not wanting to say. But the implication was clear. _Lots_.

"Right. Red, I like you a lot, and J-man and Hadj too, but you don't get it, you're right about that. And you never will. We're not like you. They call me Shinigami. Well, no, they don't. I call myself that. Have since I was a kid. Know what it means?"

"God of death," Jessie answered.

"Give the girl a prize!" Duo smirked. His posture was completely relaxed, leaning against the smooth walls of the lift, but there was nothing relaxed about his eyes. "I can't count how many people I've killed. Neither can Trowa. Neither can Heero. It's a little different for Quatre and Wufei, because they weren't killing as long as we were. But we all have hundreds of deaths to our names. We ain't gonna cry over them."

"Hundreds?" Jonny found his voice after a gulp.

"Yeah. Some of those aren't people we killed. Sometimes they're people we couldn't save. But it amounts to the same thing and you're an idiot if you think we don't feel the ones we kill the same way we feel the ones we failed."

"So you're saying Trowa cares about the people who died and will die, and that's why he's so calm?" Jessie's face was twisted in confusion.

"No. I'm saying that it doesn't matter how much he cares about the people who die. The lives of strangers aren't going to mean anything to us when one of our own is on the line. The thing about the treaty doesn't even matter. We don't play by the rules, usually. I think you might have noticed. You're not asking how Trowa can be so calm when he's got to kill people to get Cat back. You're asking how he can be so calm when the person he loves is in...is where Cat is."

"Well, yeah, I guess so."

"See, the thing is, Trowa? He isn't calm. None of us are." Duo closed his eyes suddenly.

"Listen, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to..."

"We were all told that caring about people, that having friends, was a weakness. That there was no advantage to a soldier with emotions. The first one who didn't believe it was Cat. The first one who made us more than enemies, and more than allies vaguely on the same side, was Cat. He made us a team. And then he made us a family."

Duo looked up and his eyes burned.

"Trowa's not calm. None of us are calm. We're just better at hiding it than the rest of the world. Comes with the territory. If we cried for every life we take, we'd never stop. If we broke down now, we'd never be able to do what we gotta to save Quatre and the whole rest of humanity. I don't have Trowa's magical space-heart-string-link to him or whatever they call it, and I know I'm not calm. I don't know what he's gotta do to keep going forward, but he's doing it. Better than I would. Hell, better than I am."

"When you and Jonny and Hadji were still back there," Jessie said softly, "we all pretended to be calm. But we were scared. Scared we'd never see you again, scared about what it meant that Quatre had basically ordered us to leave and even Trowa was willing to trust that."

"You'll never really understand it, though. You've got a family. You know when you were born and what name you were given and after this is over you'll go back to school and someday get a job and live in the world. Me and Trowa and Heero? We never had any of that and we never will outside of us pilots. I don't know where I came from, but I got this far because the four of them wouldn't give up on me. Cat's not our friend. He's not even family. He's way more than that. They don't have a word yet for what he is."

"I think...I don't understand, not exactly," Jonny said suddenly, "but Hadji does. He's more like you that way."

"It's a start. We're _going_ to get Cat back. None of us will breathe right until we get him back. And the truth is," he pinned them with an almost wild look of abandon, "I don't care if we lose some innocent people to do it, let alone those bastards working with Rage. If it came down to the lives of a hundred strangers or one Quatre Raberba Winner, I'll shoot those hundred myself. I'd be sorry, but not sorry enough."

"So Trowa must feel..." Jessie trailed off.

"I can't imagine it. So I'm gonna see us get Cat back soon so I don't have to. And so none of us has to find out what we become if we ever go back to who we were before we were together."

The lift came to a stop and Duo pushed off the wall, yanking at one of the carts with that easy grace of his. Halfway out the door, he looked back over his shoulder.

"You _ever_ tell anybody what I just said, I will make life very tough for you. And you can believe it. I'm Duo Maxwell, and I run, I hide, but I never tell a lie. Remember it."

Jessie and Jonny could only follow him, lost in thought and feeling cold, not from the threat, but from the iciness that was Duo's closed-off self, which they now knew came from the fact that the anchor, the base, was no longer stable beneath his feet, and until that anchor was right again, there wasn't even the illusion of peace.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Sit," Wufei instructed, pointing at a spot on the floor. Hadji humored the order, but made a face suggesting he was not pleased to be so addressed. He was not, in fact, Bandit.

"Quatre did not tell me that you were his instructor in the ways of his empathy," Hadji said conversationally. "I am surprised."

"I wouldn't say 'instructor,' but he did consult me," Wufei said, taking a seat across. "I am of the Long Clan of L5, and our histories contain much information that has been kept a secret from outsiders. People like Quatre, people who are blessed or cursed with certain gifts are not unknown to us. Though I could not find an instance of someone precisely like him, I was able to uncover enough in my research to assist."

Hadji studied the young man before him and reassessed his understanding. Thus far, Wufei had been always moving, always focused, always onto the next step of what needed to be done. Second only to Quatre himself, Wufei had proven to be comfortable giving orders and making strategic decisions, which Hadji would have expected given being an agent in Preventers. But now he was becoming aware of another facet of Wufei's character – the intellectual curiosity and spiritual awareness. The way Wufei settled onto the ground suggested he was rather familiar with meditation, and as he spoke the harsh command of his tone was melting. He spoke more like a university professor.

"You say that you met Quatre in your meditation. Can you tell me how exactly that occurred?"

Hadji launched into an explanation of what he and Quatre had experienced in the desert, the real one, and how he had been drawn forth to a metaphysical desert in his recent meditation. Wufei asked many questions, and seemed to understand their answers at least theoretically. Hadji also noticed that Wufei had switched to calling him him "Quatre" instead of "Winner." He remembered what that might mean.

When he finished, Wufei steepled his fingers in contemplation.

"Quatre's empathy is a strange thing," he said after a few moments. "From a scientific perspective, I cannot tell you how it works. It is more myth than fact, if you understand."

"Indeed. As my visits to the astral cannot be understood scientifically."

"But what is obvious is that you, through your spiritual studies, have brought yourself to a state of being in which you can reach the mind of another, even without an existing bond. You do not sense Quatre now, do you?"

"No."

"Try to reach him, then," Wufei said intently.

So Hadji closed himself into meditation, and, when he was able to touch he astral, he reached for Quatre. But there was no answering spark this time, no drawing-forth feeling. He made several attempts, but no connection was forthcoming. He opened his eyes to find Wufei's face momentarily alight in hope. The instant he shook his head, however, Wufei returned to a passive expression.

"Quatre's empathy tends not to work when he is impaired in some way. If he is asleep or unconscious, I would expect you to fail. Barton and Yuy may both still be aware of him, but he is not active anymore."

"What if...what if he were already...?" Hadji did not finish the question.

"We would know. Barton would feel it no matter what, and probably so would Yuy. And I think Maxwell and I would as well. We do not sense Quatre exactly, but I still believe we would know." He did not elaborate, and as they seemed to be on intensely personal ground, Hadji was not surprised when he moved on.

"We already know you can reach his mind. What we need is a way for you stop him, put him into a trance, anything that would interrupt him long enough for us to attack ZERO head-on and also possibly for Barton and Yuy to pull him out. To do this, you must first try it with me."

"What?"

"You heard me, Quest," Wufei scowled. "I am not gifted like Quatre, but if you can affect one mind, you may be able to affect another. Enter your meditation again, and this time attempt to disrupt my consciousness."

"You don't know what that will do. I could hurt you," Hadji pointed out.

"Possible, but unlikely. I am not as sensitive as the mind you must ultimately defeat. Try."

It went against everything of Hadji's teachings, but he could also see the sense in it. If he could master a technique by which he could reach someone through meditation, he could ready himself to fight against much greater resistance when he faced Quatre locked in the ZERO System. Still, he was not sure.

"There is a trigger to pull me out of meditation. If I do anything that will impair you, you must stop me."

"Oh, I will."

"I'm sure you would find a way," he replied dryly, "but you need simply shake my shoulder. I will always answer to that, even deep in the astral."

"Very well. Now stop stalling and try. We do not have the time to waste on your hesitations." The words were cutting and Hadji saw the fire in the black eyes that burned not for him, but for the fact that this warrior had to put his trust in a stranger, an outsider, to save one of his own.

Hadji's mind was relatively well-ordered, so another trip into the quiet of his own soul was no trouble. Finding himself in his own lighthouse again, he considered. From here, he had reached Quatre successfully when the ground broke open beneath him, as though he were between his meditation and what lay beyond. The astral, then, or the path to it, would be where he would start this new endeavor as well. He selected an hourglass – the same had been about to touch when Quatre had shaken the floor beneath him – but as he turned it, as he moved up and beyond, he thought only of Wufei.

At first, he went nowhere.

But Hadji was nothing if not patient, and after more than one attempt, he felt something change. It wasn't so much seeing as feeling, but there in the amorphous and definitionless space outside of space, he felt a particular pulse that felt like Wufei, though he could not have said why. It just...felt right. It was like a spike of flame in a barren landscape, where other spikes might be found over the hills or behind him, but he was only looking for one and so only one was right here.

Hadji didn't quite know what to do with it. This was, for lack of a better way of thinking about it, the psychic essence of Wufei that he had been asked to "disrupt." Somehow the idea of dousing the flame entirely felt wholly dangerous. But he had to do something to it. He tried to touch it and it burned. He tried to manipulate the environment, to toss a rock or something into it, but there was nothing to touch or move.

Left with no better options, Hadji crouched down and, bracing himself, cupped his hands and tried to smother it for just a moment.

The next thing he knew, he was lying flat on his back with Wufei bending over him.

"Quest, are you all right?" he barked.

"Yes, of course," Hadji responded automatically. Then, "Wait, what happened?"

"You are an untrained, unskilled, and unsubtle mind-bender," Wufei sat back on his heels, his face showing a small amount of disgust. "You caused your own breathing to become depressed."

"Did it work, then?"

"Yes. I have a slight headache now, and I was momentarily dizzy," he answered. "But the impact to you was far worse than to me. That is what we must correct. A mere headache will not be enough for your task."

"You wish me to do it again?" He pulled himself into a sitting position and looked rather skeptically at the Chinese Preventers agent. "I am sure any further efforts will only compound the problem for you."

"Are you being deliberately obtuse?" Wufei almost snarled. "We have one chance to rescue Quatre. When he is plugged into the ZERO System and compromised by Rage, we have to shut him down long enough to take out Rage and the system or he'll kill us all and a large portion of the human race. By your own admission Quatre knows that even the empathic bond with Trowa will not be enough to wake him from ZERO's influence, and if we can't take Quatre down, we'll have to kill him. And you're worried about whether or not I get a headache? You're a fool."

"You...you don't care," Hadji found himself saying aloud. "You don't care what it does to you. As long as it ends with the certainty that I can stop him."

"Yes, obviously."

"I understand," Hadji straightened up and resumed his meditative position. "I will continue."

"Finally. I didn't think you were as stupid as Maxwell, so thank you for not disappointing me." Wufei returned to his own place and waited.

This time as Hadji slid into the beyond, he did so with a hidden smile. Wufei may have wished to be nothing but gruff and in control, but what he had shown was a great deal more than that. His willingness to risk himself, not even knowing what the consequences might be, for the sake of Quatre and the innocents in the line of fire – Hadji saw that it grew from something much deeper than honor or duty. He could only respect it. And continue on.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Hello? Earth to Benton..."

"Oh!" Dr Quest rocked back in his chair so hard he caused it to tip. However, one did not survive being part of the Quest family without keen reflexes, so he managed to right himself before an embarrassing disaster. Bandit, however, who had been asleep across his feet, was not pleased by the violent wake-up and shook himself before trotting off elsewhere.

"Hi Race," he said sheepishly, looking up.

"Found your way back from Mars, then?" his friend and bodyguard smiled tiredly. He offered him a steaming cup of coffee. "Figured you might need this."

"Thanks. What time is it?"

"Do you really want me to answer that?"

"Actually, no, please," Benton sighed. The last time he'd done the math, he had been up for close to 30 hours, and it was later still by now. But he caught Race's eye and smirked; both of them had done a lot worse on other occasions when time was short, and they both knew they could hack it.

"The kids are fine," Race anticipated his next question. "All of them. Well, as fine as we can expect them to be, I reckon. Jonny and Jessie finished hauling stuff and took a nap. Hadji hasn't come out from whatever he's doing with Wufei yet, but I haven't head any shouting, so I guess it's going well. Heero is still going over tactics with Rashid, and Duo and Trowa are working with the suits. I swear, those guys are something else. I'm getting ready to drop and they look like they could go for days."

"Because they probably have, Race." Benton pushed back from the desk a bit. "And not just in the war, when we know they might have gone days without rest. The training those boys must have undergone to be what they are...it's unfathomable."

"When we were planning the attack, I suggested a tranquilizer for Quatre, and Heero said it wouldn't work reliably unless they tried something dangerous," Race said thoughtfully. "I asked why and he said something about drug tolerances and experimental compounds. Unless I miss my guess, I think they were trained not only to fight, but to resist everything from torture to truth serum. It sounds like the only thing that ever beat them was ZERO."

"Would that I had never designed that system." Dr Quest ran a hand over his face wearily. "I just...I didn't know. I believed I was working on something that would be good for mankind, that would better protect us working and building in space, that would allow one man to do the work of many and spare others from the dangerous jobs."

"You can't blame yourself, Benton," he said comfortingly. "Your good intentions are not at fault for what Ezekiel Rage has made from them. And from what I understand, he couldn't have done all this with just your program. He probably had some record of ZERO from the war and mixed them together."

"I know. But it's that this is my work, and it's become a threat to people everywhere. Not to mention what it might be doing right this instant to a boy no older than Jonny, or what it did to Jonny already." His heart still ached from his son's torment.

"Hey," Race perched on the desk. "We've been through a lot worse than this. And with a lot less backup. Between us and those kids out there and that tiny army of really scary-looking Arabian guys, we're going to make this right."

"Yes, but...we can't undo what's been done." Dr Quest's face looked suddenly haggard, when it hadn't a moment prior. "We can't repair the harm done to Jonny or Quatre from being exposed to that...thing. We can't save the lives of the people that have already been killed in an attempt to stop it. And we can't give back the additional lives we might well take to correct my mistakes."

"Don't, Benton." Race's voice was firm. "Don't offer pity and regret to those that don't deserve it. Every man and woman helping Rage would happily burn down a whole colony. That's what they want. You're a good man, and good men feel it when death happens, but don't torture yourself for people that aren't worth your kindness."

"Is that how you survive with it?"

"Sometimes," and his light eyes took on a faraway look. "I can count every time I've killed a man protecting this family, Benton. And no, I won't tell you how many there have been. But when I see Jessie racing with Jonny, or Hadji and you bent over a project, well, it doesn't make it all right. But it makes it bearable."

"I forget sometimes that you're as much a soldier as the Gundam pilots were."

"Maybe a bit more of one," and he quirked a half-smile. "At least _I_ took orders when I was in the service. I'm not sure they have ever really accepted any hierarchy above themselves. They make their own rules, and they live by them. You should have heard Heero's plan."

"Speaking of which, I should tell you what I've come up with," Dr Quest segued back to business. He took another grateful sip of the coffee and fixed his eyes on the screen. "My version of the program has a number of fail-safes, specifically designed to shut it down in the event that the user is overwhelmed. There's even a means of tracking a user's health to ensure they don't suffer any damage while enveloped in the program. If Rage hasn't overwritten those safeguards, I should be able to develop a virus that will convince ZERO that Quatre is in physical danger. That should force it to shut down quickly and properly, ensuring his full ejection from the system."

"That's great!"

"There's one downside."

"There's always a downside," Race returned.

"It can't be introduced remotely. The virus will never get through any decent firewall. I'll make it as robust as I can, but in the end I think it has to be uploaded directly into the ZERO console." Benton sighed.

"Well," and Race unexpectedly smiled, "that's all right, because our whole plan is based on bringing the fight right down Rage's throat. We're all going straight into the lion's den."

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Heero."

The Japanese ex-pilot looked up to see Trowa entering the private office and considered for a moment trying to feign disinterest. But Trowa had already seen Bandit crouched on the couch next to Heero, happily leaning into the hand that smoothed his fur down his back. Heero stopped petting the dog for a moment, and Bandit took that as a sign to roll over.

"He likes you," Trowa said, coming to stand in front of the couch.

"I don't have much good luck with dogs," he replied, resolutely not thinking of a puppy and a little girl long since dead by his hand.

"Dogs follow. They sense strength in others and add to it, bend to it. But dogs work best as a pack They trust only their own and protect each other to the death."

Heero raised an eyebrow and waited. Trowa wasn't as silent as they liked to tease him about, but he sometimes spoke slowly and in a roundabout manner. There was no real point in rushing him – he'd get to things when he was ready.

"When dogs lose their alpha leader, they struggle. The pack will fight within themselves, and sometimes they'll have to separate if they cannot find a way to work together. If a strong enough new dog appears, though, and wins challenge, they will follow the new one."

He reached a hand over and began scratching Bandit's ribcage, causing the dog to flop ungracefully about the couch.

"Wolves mate for life. If the alpha leader of the pack dies, the alpha's mate will die, too."

"We're going to get Quatre back," Heero said firmly. He didn't like the direction Trowa's words were taking.

"I've been dead twice before," Trowa still didn't look at him. "I was born dead I didn't even know it. Then I met Quatre and then somehow being a Gundam pilot wasn't death anymore because I wasn't alone. Then I died again, and I didn't come back until Quatre pulled me out of ZERO with my memories intact."

"I know," Heero closed his eyes. "Once, you saved me from death. The second time, Quatre pulled me out of ZERO, too."

"You said you would kill him. If you had to."

" _Hai_."

"If it comes to that," Trowa met his eyes burningly, "I might not be able to let you."

"If it comes to that," Heero found himself admitting what he had not before, "I might not be able to do it."

"If you kill Quatre, you'll have to kill me."

"I know." Heero met the gaze unflinchingly. "And it won't just be him and you anymore."

They could both feel it. That aching tether that should have led to Quatre and was instead quiet and lost, only now and again humming and then only with pain. Its absence was like a blade stuck through the heart. They could survive as long as the blade remained, but as soon as it was pulled free, they would both bleed until they were empty. And if they were honest, they knew something of Duo and Wufei would die as well, although not as directly. Probably. But there was no way to know for certain. Perhaps the five of them had reached the point of no return.

The point after which the loss of one would become the loss of them all.

"Heero." Trowa sat suddenly, as though all the strength had gone out of him. "You once told me to live by my emotions."

"Yes."

"I can't. I had to...Wufei helped me do something to break myself from him for now, or I wouldn't be..."

"I understand." And he did. His bond with Quatre wasn't very strong at this distance, but the echoes were present. If Trowa had been feeling anything at all of what whispered barely in Heero's heart, it would have been agony.

"But I don't know how to live by my emotions without him anymore. I don't know how to feel if he isn't here," and he gripped at his chest with a claw-like hand.

"I know."

"Please," and his eyes became fever-bright as he widened them almost too far, but his voice was unnaturally steady. "The pack is fracturing. You have to lead us. You have to bring Quatre back. Nothing else matters, not the mission, not even Rage. Only Quatre. He has to come back. You're the one who can do it."

"I'm not..."

"You are. You're the 'perfect soldier.' You're stronger than all of us. Quatre believes that," he almost whispered. "This rescue... _we can't fail_."

"Trowa," Heero actually reached out and put a hand on Trowa's shoulder that should have been shaking and was eerily still. "I will save Katoru. I will protect him and I will _bring him back to us_. I'll do whatever it takes."

If Quatre believed in Heero, then Heero would tear hell open to get him back.

They didn't say the things that were obvious. Neither admitted that the raw parts of their souls would rather have Quatre alive and safe and see a colony destroyed and all lives lost. Neither voiced the fear about what they might find at the end of the tethers that led them to that remarkable and essential soul, about what might be left after ZERO had ravaged it again. Neither discussed what might happen if there was no hope, if Heero had to choose to end Quatre's life, if he could even choose that path, and found himself across from a Trowa willing to kill him to prevent it. They knew it all too well.

"Dogs follow strength," Trowa said instead after a few silent minutes. "That's why Bandit likes you. He likes Quatre, too, and Jonny and the other Quests. But he likes you in particular. He sees your power."

He stood and moved towards the door, turning back just before touching the knob.

"Lend us that power, Heero, or the pack won't hold much longer."


	17. Rescue Operation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Going to post this one and the next chapter at the same time. I just can't not. You'll know why when you get to the end here.
> 
> Thanks all for the support!
> 
> Enjoy!

"So, what is the plan, exactly?" Jessie asked. She looked across the hangar at the dozens of men donning their flight-suits and shouting to one another as they prepared. The mobile construction units had all been retrofitted with a certain amount of weaponry – nothing on what the Maganacs had piloted during the war, but certainly impressive enough given the short time-frame they'd given themselves.

"Well, we obviously can't just walk in the way we did last time," Race said, adjusting the fit of his own flight-suit at the collar. The Quests, the four Gundam pilots, and Howard were all off to one side, running through checks of their equipment. "So we had to come up with something else."

"The Maganacs are going to provide cover, confusion, and a secured flight path," Heero spoke without even looking up from where he was methodically loading several Glocks to be secured to his person. "Wufei will be with the five of you in the Preventers shuttle. Trowa, Duo, and myself will infiltrate directly."

"We're not taking the New Jersey?" Dr Quest asked.

"Hey, be glad we're taking it at all. If we could've done this with just the suits, we probably would have," Duo spoke up. "But there's nothing in the Earth Sphere that could convince Une to let you to pilot armed suits, and like it or not, you all are coming with us. Besides," and he looked away, "there's no way of knowing what state Cat will be in, and they just aren't big enough for two."

"She's a good little ship, but she doesn't have a med bay," Race said softly.

"And the New Jersey is also insufficiently armored for the assault," Wufei added. "I have requisitioned a Preventers ship that will offer us a better chance of a successful extraction."

"Then how are you getting there?" Jessie asked Duo, as Heero was now turned towards a pack on the floor and Trowa scarcely appeared to be listening.

"Oh, we'll hitch a ride with Rashid for most of it. We're not gonna swim there. If we break in through a vent or something, the three of us can get in easier and faster than forty suits and a shuttle. We'll make sure the doors get opened for you."

"Once we arrive," Wufei took up the explanation, "Dr Quest and Bannon will accompany me as we attempt to reach the ZERO console. You three will remain in the shuttle."

He looked up and met Hadji's eyes unflinchingly, then turned to Jonny. "I'm putting you in charge."

"Me? Why?" Jonny did not shy away from Wufei's focused gaze. But it was Hadji who answered.

"To attempt to reach Quatre through the mind, I will have to be in a deep trance, unaware of my surroundings. I will need someone to protect me should circumstances require it, and everyone else will be busy extracting Quatre from Rage. But, Agent Chang?"

"Yes?"

"What do I do if…?" he trailed off.

"We have already discussed it," the Chinese young man dismissed whatever it was. "Quest, your job will be to ensure his safety. If he is unable to reach Winner, he is to tell you immediately and you are to relay that information to us without delay."

His words were said in a very business-like coldness, and Jonny found himself nodding reflexively. Of course he would protect Hadji, even if he didn't want the others going on without him; still, his brother's safety mattered, too. But the idea that Hadji might fail made his throat get tight. If Hadji couldn't reach Quatre, there was a good chance Quatre would die at the hands of his friends without ever even waking up out of the horrors of ZERO.

"Master Trowa." Rashid walked up and gave a cursory bow – not the one he gave to Quatre, but an abbreviated one. "We are ready."

The large man was outwardly calm, but there was no denying his tension. In one hand he carried a pair of goggles that could only be Quatre's. Trowa nodded in greeting and said nothing, but Duo actually offered him a slightly creepy smile.

"Don't worry. Cat'll be back for you to yell at soon. And those guys that took him are gonna be real sorry they did."

"Indeed," Rashid's eyes narrowed harshly. "Master Quatre has always protected us. These terrorists do not know what they unleashed when they risked our anger. We will die to a man to save him."

"Don't," Trowa finally spoke. "Don't any of you die. He'll never forgive you if you do."

That earned him almost a look of relief on the larger man's face and he bowed again. "Understood, Master Trowa. I shall give the men their orders, then."

"Orders?" Hadji asked as Rashid turned and walked away.

"He's telling them that they aren't allowed to die unless Quatre tells them to," Heero answered. "If Quatre tells them to survive, they will for his sake, no matter the odds. It's how they never lost anyone during the wars."

"Speaking of orders," Howard piped up, rocking on his heels, "have you got a fallback plan? In case you can't get to the kid in time or can't shut down ZERO? You know, to keep all the rest of us from looking down the wrong end of a missile?"

"Yes," Wufei nodded curtly. "If we fail, Une will summarily destroy the installation and everyone inside it."

"Then you'd better not fail." Even the grim situation didn't seem to phase him, as his characteristic bright shirt and shrug illustrated. Though the shirt really had no vote in how serious the situation might be.

"Don't worry," Duo said to the alarmed expression on Dr Quest's face. "If it comes to that, it's because we're all dead already anyway."

 

-==OOO==-

 

Quatre's mind whirled. For a few disorienting minutes, he appeared to be free of the influx of Rage's homicidal emotions again, but ZERO gave no such reprieve. In the part of Quatre that was left to wonder, he supposed Rage might get tired of gripping the back of his neck so much, or need to do other things, and that was why he sometimes vanished.

But just because there was no maniacal desire to commit genocide against the entire human race flooding into his heart didn't mean Quatre was entirely in control. The momentary mastery he'd accomplished over the ZERO System had been wiped away in the first throes of that parasitical wash of emotion, and now that he was vaguely himself again, it appeared that ZERO had hooked deeply into his brain bypassing even his momentary consciousness.

As Quatre had learned, any time he attempted to actually log onto the ZERO System to use it himself, instead of just having _it_ logged on to _him_ , some sort of warning must go off because almost at once Rage would return. He wondered if that was Rage's addition, or if it was a measure his own brain had come up with to ensure he was controlled. Quatre shuddered to think how much harm he was doing, deliberately, methodically, without consciously ever being a willing participant.

It felt a bit like floating in space in the wake of a blast from a beam cannon – he was aware of burning hot and cold, of turning and twisting in a helpless, uncontrolled flail, of a thousand pinpricks of pain striking him from all angles. But at least here, between heartbeats, he could _think_ even if he couldn't act. ZERO plus Rage was like being dropped in a lake of fire and barbed wire and being repeatedly struck by lightning.

::Incoming threat detected.::

"No," Quatre fought to keep from being submerged again. "No, don't hurt them." He knew what sort of threat would rouse ZERO, and from whom it would most likely come.

::Defenses activated. Chance of incursion 65-percent.::

"I won't let you use me to hurt my friends!" he twisted in the iron mental grip that held him.

::Probable enemy course of action determined. Greatest threat assessed is to current ZERO user Recommend control of user by all necessary means.::

"Hadji!" Quatre roared through his heart as he braced himself. "Hadji make sure they stop me!"

And his world went to white and pain.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Zero One to Zero Five."

"Go ahead," Wufei said curtly, simultaneously dodging an explosion on the starboard side. This ship, unlike the New Jersey, was broken into three clear sections – cockpit, med bay, and a large cabin to the aft that was built to drop anything from a jeep to a platoon out the back of the craft. So the Quests, strapped into the bench seats in the forward compartment, had a front-row seat to Wufei's piloting and the chaos of the battle around them.

The dark sky was spotted with explosions as the Maganac suits drew fire from the mounted turrets installed by Rage's people around the installation. For all the shooting, though, no suits had been destroyed, though a few had had very close calls. Rashid's suit, distinguished by the markings on the shoulders, sped back through the chaos of the others returning fire and obstructing any clear shots to the shuttle, arms no longer clamped tightly against the chest cavity. Only a sharp eye would have picked out the three forms holding on earlier before he had released them with enough momentum to propel themselves to the installation.

Jonny looked to where Race had a hand on his daughter's knee and suddenly missed Bandit. Somehow, being surrounded by a battlefield like this made him want to ground himself in something alive. His father shot him a shaky smile and he returned one of his own, feeling a bit sick. The only ones who seemed entirely unaffected were Wufei – for obvious reasons – and Hadji. And it wasn't that Hadji didn't care so much as he had his eyes closed and was focusing very hard.

Jonny instinctively tightened his fingers around the grip of the tranquilizer gun at his hip. In a matter of moments they would be alone in a shuttle, and his brother's life (and the lives of everybody else) might well depend on his ability to hold off the terrorists and protect their escape. The Maganacs would also leave several of their number nearby, those not working against the terrorists' armaments outside, but still. He strengthened his resolve. Everybody was trusting them with a lot. Well, maybe not everybody – Jonny was pretty sure the Gundams working alone would have just left the shuttle unguarded and, if it was gone when they got back, they would have found another way.

"We're in. Transmitting coordinates for docking," returned Heero's voice.

"Acknowledged."

"Zero Two will meet you for incursion. Zero Three and I are going ahead to the extraction point."

That wasn't part of the strategy, and everybody perked up as Wufei spoke again. "Zero One, why the deviation from the mission plan?"

There was a long pause before the answer. "Because we are moving _now_."

"You'll see," Duo's voice was a little strained. "Just trust us."

"Understood. Zero Five out." He looked back at his passengers. "Prepare yourselves. We dock in 90 seconds."

Most of those 90 seconds were a journey that made Jonny just as glad he hadn't been able to eat a lot in the last day or so, because the ridiculous dodging and weaving as Wufei pushed the ship to its limits to breach the defensive perimeter of the mining installation was beyond unpleasant. Even Race with his iron stomach looked a bit green by the time the ship righted itself and shot into the opening hangar bay. There were a few other ships docked here, and many men running. However, several Maganac suits followed in their wake and drew and returned fire even as the airlock closed behind them.

Wufei practically leaped out of his seat the minute he had fully docked the craft, sprinting to the door. Out one window, Jonny could see Duo, distinctive braid flying, racing along the walkway nearby. He was no longer carrying the big bag he'd refused to let anyone touch when preparing for the mission, back to the same gear from the last time with an added pouch on one hip.

"Status?" Wufei demanded, throwing open the door.

"Zero One and Zero Three are already moving," Duo replied, pushing off the railing to meet him at the ship's door. "The reason they, well..." he blinked and stopped.

Above the gunfire and the shouting, there was the unmistakable sound of a voice crackling through the PA system.

"Offensive capacity of enemy substantial. Defensive capability of agents outmatched. Reroute mission objectives. Redirecting chemical options to compromised locations."

"That's Quatre? I mean, Zero Four?" Race paled and swallowed hard. Because the voice was certainly familiar, but it was twisted, cold, harsh, as though it were being fed through a soulless void.

"Yeah," Duo nodded. "ZERO's got him good. They couldn't wait."

"Then we need to catch up with them," Wufei said, drawing his sword, "before they do anything else foolish. Quest," he pinned Jonny with a glare, "lock up the ship and keep nothing a secret from me."

"Understood," Jonny nodded. He managed a tight smile at his father before Wufei practically hauled the scientist by the elbow out the door after Duo, who was already returning to the walkway.

"Be safe, you three," Race said, his own gaze steady. He pulled the door closed and Jessie keyed in the lock.

"Okay, Hadji. Time to do your stuff," she said. She glanced out the window and saw four or five Maganac suits settle around them as a guard. "Let's hope this works."

Hadji moved back to the med bay and seated himself on the floor; as the med bay had no windows it was a safer location in the ongoing firefight. Jessie took up a position on a bed nearby and Jonny perched in the doorway where he could keep an eye on things outside. Hadji arranged himself and let out a deep breath.

"My friends," he said quietly, "I do not know if this will work or what it will do. By the time Agent Chang and I finished our training, I was able to impact his mind, but there were consequences to myself. I cannot tell you what to expect."

"We know," Jessie answered. "Whatever it is, we'll be here."

"Thank you. I would tell you that if circumstances arose that demanded you leave me to save your own lives you ought to do it, but I know you will only argue with me," and he smiled a bit at them both. "So I shall not waste the energy on it."

"About time you figured that out, Hadj," Jonny replied, a bit of his usual smile making it into his voice. "Now get cracking. The sooner you can stop Quatre, the sooner we'll be out of here."

"Indeed." And he closed his eyes.

Jessie and Jonny exchanged a glance. At the moment, there wasn't much either of them could do, but they were ready. Ready for anything.

Or so they hoped.

 

-==OOO==-

 

Wufei felt his face contort into a snarl as he sliced through the armor of a particularly stubborn opponent, eventually forcing him to his knees and striking him across the temple with the flat of his blade. These men, they weren't just loyal – they were fanatical. Whatever means Rage had to gain so many followers had won the sort of to-the-death devotion that Winner inspired in the Maganacs. He found it annoying.

"I'm starting to reconsider whether Une should just blow this place even if we do succeed," he muttered just loud enough for Maxwell at his elbow to hear. Maxwell snickered before spinning to cut down another man to clear the corridor for more sprinting.

Wufei charged forward, hearing more than seeing their two allies in his wake, Maxwell at the back. To their credit, Bannon and Quest were able to keep up with the demanding pace he set as they blurred through the hallways towards their goal. And it wasn't just that Barton and Yuy were somewhat ahead of them still and they needed to regroup that drove him.

"Intruders have entered section delta. Rerouting secondary squadron."

Wufei grit his teeth. Winner's voice should not sound like that. He would prefer to hear his friend screaming than that dead and empty timbre echoing through the satellite. At least a scream meant life and spirit and rebellion and courage. This could only mean obliteration of everything that made Quatre himself.

To hell with a Preventers arrest; Rage was going to die for this.

"Zero One," he barked into his wrist. "Location?"

"Two levels from the ZERO control room," came the brisk answer.

"We're right above you. Hold position so we can join you," he responded. Without even breaking stride, Wufei smashed a kick into the access panel at knee-height in the nearest wall, ripping it free.

Climbing through ducts and small spaces came naturally to Maxwell, and Wufei was not unskilled at it, but he was surprised with the lithe capabilities shown by Bannon and Quest as they followed. Apparently crawling around an enemy stronghold between levels was familiar. Interesting.

Wufei kicked out the bottom of the shaft and dropped into a hallway just as Barton and Yuy rounded the corner. Quest was next, landing not as gracefully, but doing himself no dishonor. Bannon landed in perfect silence, and Maxwell, of course, was as good as invisible. The six shared only the briefest acknowledgment before setting off in the correct direction. Wufei took the opportunity to examine the wayward members of his team.

Yuy had what Maxwell would have called his "game face" on – utterly cool, focused, deadly. The voice of Quatre in the corridor caused only a brief flicker of change, but that could well have been the soldier reacting to the tactical information he was receiving by paying attention. Yuy showed no outward strain at all. Or wouldn't have except that Wufei knew him too well for that. Yuy's jaw was too tense, his shoulders too high, and every now and again he glanced down and Wufei knew he was willing his chest to stop aching with whatever he was picking up from the empath ahead.

But it was Barton that worried Wufei the most. Certainly he didn't want to have anyone who was not in total control on this mission, but Barton's face was almost slack it was so empty. He seemed not even to hear the voice coming over the speakers, and showed not a whit of unsteadiness. Wufei knew Barton had locked his emotions down, but this total coldness was something else. It was beyond unnatural, and it was also, possibly, a problem. Because if Barton could not summon his bond with Winner, their chances of breaking him from ZERO would be far slimmer if Hadji Quest failed in his mission.

However, there was nothing to do for it until it became a problem and his plan only relied upon Trowa and Heero as a fallback. Not that his fellow pilots knew that – the only one aware of his full plan was, in fact, Hadji Quest, and for good reason. So Wufei continued, allowing Yuy to lead the way as they worked through the corridors until they faced the door that would lead them to Quatre.

The voice had tracked their progress steadily, and showed no sign at all of impact, so they could assume no psychic disruption that would aid them had occurred yet. As the door opened to them, even Wufei took a slight step back.

Displayed along the far wall was a map of the Earth Sphere, the major cities on Earth and all the colony clusters marked in red. The plans for their destruction were absolutely, starkly clear. There illuminated were the missile trajectories, the paths that would bring death to millions. Where before the ZERO cockpit had been less than a meter above the floor on a small platform, it was now raised half the height of a Gundam, presiding over the legacy of destruction writ large on the projection. From this distance, they could not even see Winner wrapped up in it.

But Rage was all too obvious, standing beside the ZERO cockpit with one hand on the pilot within.

"You who dare to thwart the will of the book of Rage will know death and pain!" he crowed.

"Shut up!" Maxwell snapped. "We don't have time for your crazy."

"Zero Five?" Jonny's voice was soft in the earpieces.

"Go ahead," he said, covering the action by turning to engage one of the fanatics in the room.

"Hadji says he can't get through to Zero Four. Rage's influence is blocking him. You've got to get him away from Zero Four or Hadji won't be able to reach him."

"Understood." He looked up and saw a fierce glint in Heero's eyes. "Zero One, handle it. The rest of us will protect Quest."

As Dr Quest made his way to a deserted terminal, Bannon at his heels and Maxwell covering them as well, Wufei moved to position himself between where they would make their stand and a few more terrorists. He was working his way through them when Winner's voice rang out in the space.

"Strategic advantage due to communications eliminated."

And in the next moment, there was a burning on Wufei's wrist as his comm shorted out.

"Dammit!" Bannon swore, shaking his arm more in anger and surprise than pain.

"Never mind!" Quest said. "Just keep them away from me for a few minutes!"

Wufei turned his attention to where Yuy was scaling the tower that led to Winner, ZERO, and Rage. Barton was covering him from below, eyes still cold and empty. A man on a walkway three levels above charged into the room and opened fire with a large automatic weapon, aiming at those two. Both were forced to dodge, Yuy having to drop back to the floor and roll to evade being shot. A new wave of armed men stormed in from one of the other entrances and soon it was a proper melee.

Several minutes passed with little change. Because the ZERO's opponents were in the room with the ZERO user himself, rerouting missiles to kill them was no longer a plausible plan, so the system had taken to focusing on fighting Dr Quest's virus as he tried to upload it, keeping up a running commentary as it did in Quatre's _wrong_ voice. Rage seemed to be caught up in the moment, giving a long speech that was unfortunately audible across the din of the fighting, but in truth nobody was paying attention. Bannon was right at Quest's elbow, alternately protecting him and offering help as the scientist frantically fought off ZERO's system defenses. Maxwell never moved more than a few paces from them, and Wufei stymied the tide of terrorists who even made it that far. Barton and Yuy were still attempting to get enough cover or a break in the firing to get up the pedestal to reach Winner.

"Dad!"

_That_ got Wufei's attention. He spun, neatly kicking a man as he did, to see the three who were supposed to be in the Preventers shuttle entering the room. They looked unhurt, but mussed – they'd been fighting. He was momentarily impressed that they had come so far on their own, but that melted before his own fury.

"What are you doing here?" he demanded, cutting down another man so he could move closer to them. "My orders were _very specific_."

"The comms went out," Jonny said, raising his chin defiantly. "We couldn't communicate with you anymore. Rashid radioed us in the shuttle and told us he would guard it in our place if we needed to go. So we did."

"When it went so quiet, we thought maybe..." Jessie trailed off, her eyes finding her father and the sight of him caused her to relax slightly.

"Karla?" came a confused and surprisingly gentle voice from somewhere in the room. Wufei dismissed it without a moment's hesitation.

"I don't care what you thought! And if we weren't in the middle of this I'd send you back there!" he practically shouted. Then, "Get to what you're supposed to be doing," he glared at Hadji. He pointed to a sheltered corner behind a bank of computers.

The trio ducked into the corner. Wufei grumbled several disparaging things about the ancestors of those three, but set himself about equidistant between them and where Dr Quest was still working on that virus. It made him the least defended and most exposed, and therefore a target. Perfect.

Out of nowhere, Yuy launched himself from a walkway a level up, using his momentum and the somewhat tricky artificial gravity, or lack thereof, to finish the ascent while taking out the man providing the most cover-fire that had pinned him in place. He had scarcely even pulled himself up on the platform before he was pivoting and striking at Rage with a great deal of pent-up anger of his own.

"How dare you? You pretender to the Throne of Rage!"

"I've almost got it!" Dr Quest yelled from where he was still hunched. "I just need a way of getting into this station."

"Here!" Maxwell yanked something out of his braid and tossed it. Bannon caught it and eyed the palm-sized multi-tool.

"I'm not sure I want to know how you hid that in your hair," he said to nobody in particular as he and Dr Quest began making quick work of the panel before them. The instant it was open, Dr Quest was halfway inside it, one hand keying rapidly on his laptop and the other moving wires around.

"Aargh!"

The bat-like form of Rage toppled from his place, landing easily in the light gravity and retreating out the nearest door. Yuy drew one of his Glocks and began sniping from his elevated position. He failed to hit Rage, but several other men went down in a matter of moments.

"Hadji, now! And get up there, Zero Three!" Wufei ordered.

The test of the plan had come at last.


	18. Incursion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See? Better to have this now.
> 
> Enjoy!

Hadji had kept himself in a light trance from the time they'd boarded the Preventers shuttle and had maintained it successfully, so even the fighting around him faded away when he bent his will and discipline back to the pursuit of the mind. He didn't really recall the journey from the ship to this room, nor the few men his friends had encountered, he had been so caught up in that focus. Normally he would have been right beside them to protect them, but he also knew his friends were safe and could handle themselves. It was Quatre who was in the most danger now.

The hours spent with Wufei had steadily increased Hadji's comfort with walking the fine border between the astral and his inner consciousness to that place where he could encounter and disrupt others, not to mention enhancing his ability to act there without throwing himself out of meditation. As with each prior attempt, he allowed himself to dissolve while in the lighthouse of his mind and seek the darkness at the edge of another plane of existence. Everywhere around him hummed bright lights, including Wufei's which he would now forever recognize given how many times he had faced it. And as with the previous attempt, he found what could only be Quatre.

Before, when he'd been in the shuttle trying to do this, he'd been drawn to the flickering soul only to find himself nearly impaled upon lances of fury and hate and violence, the influence of Ezekiel Rage. His soul had been battered against the man's insanity until he had been forced to retreat until Rage could be pushed away from his direct interference with Quatre. Hadji knew that same horrible presence was near, but now he could choose to avoid it. He was no moth lured to a powerful flame – he could turn aside from that maliciousness and seek instead the gentler spirit of his friend.

This time, as he approached what his heart knew was Quatre, he found a different barrier in place. As though concealed in a metallic shell, Hadji could sense the familiar warmth, but it was muted, contained, imprisoned. He moved with much less fear – where Rage was a living being whose aura could be dangerous, that which kept him from Quatre now must be ZERO, and for all its diabolical use and danger, ZERO was still only a computer program. Its only power here in the mind was what it leeched from Quatre directly. And even an advanced computer program could not be prepared to cope with a psychic incursion. Though how it had manifested at all, Hadji could not begin to guess.

"Quatre Raberba Winner," Hadji said, putting out his metaphysical hands and straining to reach through the blockage. "I have come. It is time for you to rest that we might free you."

There was no change and Hadji considered his options. Wufei's mind had appeared to him as a tower of something bright, flaming, which he had disrupted by momentarily dousing the fire. But Quatre looked more like a tree stump, a misshapen lump with roots that vanished into the astral, but the bark of the stump was the metallic shell that he could not penetrate. Somehow he had to do something that would impair the person in the real world by acting against what little he could reach here within the astral plane. But how?

Looking more closely, Hadji saw that what had at first appeared to his mind as a solid shell was, in fact, more like scales, tightly packed and overlapping, concealing and covering the real soul within. Beneath them he sensed not fire, but water. Quatre's soul did not burn like Wufei's; it engulfed. Unmuted by this shell, Hadji realized that he would appear like a fountain, water and life and emotion swirling and rising and raining down in a riot of energy and motion. And the network of scales that branched out to cover the roots were choking what should have been rivers and streams, those ties that bound Quatre to all around him.

He reached out to touch one flow of scales and found if he concentrated on it, they seemed to fade or flake off, revealing the brightly flowing spirit beneath. The shell was obviously limiting Quatre's psychic self, and if he was correct that they represented ZERO's impact on his mind, then apparently he did indeed have the ability to disrupt it.

Hadji found himself smiling. The largest of those connections would be, must be, a tether back to the real world, the conduit through which Quatre's metaphysical empathy manifested in his corporeal body just as the coals of the flame had been Wufei's link with his physical self. If he could only block the rivers, dam them up or cut them off, he might be able to cause just enough of an imbalance in Quatre's mind as to render him more easily pulled out of ZERO while simultaneously loosening ZERO's hold on him. It was risky, but perhaps his best option.

Still, the astral didn't exactly come equipped with tools. Hadji knew that everything in the mind worked on metaphor and symbols, so what he did would have to correspond to what he intended. As when he'd doused the fire that was Wufei, he must find a way of isolating the spiritual essence of Quatre to disrupt it in the real world.

"Oh, I hope I know what I am doing," he said to himself grimly.

With very few options and fewer ideas, Hadji, settled on the only course of action he could think of – he attempted to insert himself between the root-like rivers and heart of Quatre's soul, wrapping himself around the bulk of the scaled shell and cutting off the tendrils that reached for it.

It felt like trying to contain a porcupine whose spines were spitting hydrochloric acid into every pore of his metaphysical body. In the mind, size is a figment of the imagination so Hadji had envisioned himself curling his whole body around the scaled stump-like thing with long, thin wires that led outward. Every place he managed to interrupt one of the streams of Quatre's connections burned at him, as though the tendril were trying to bore a hole through his flesh to reattach itself to its core.

"It's not real flesh," he reminded himself firmly. "This is all in the mind." And the pain quieted.

As he tightened his resolve and focused on each individual thread that led from this center-of-Quatre to all other places, he felt them snapping and breaking apart. The warmth of what should have been Quatre's soul was still encased in the cold unfeelingness of the ZERO shell, but that shield was not absolute and between the cracks a burst of life and warmth and pure spirit would shine through. Unfortunately, these moments of the real Quatre would only pull harder to keep the ties outward attached, and Hadji felt remorse as he fought them. It was like tearing his friend from his loved ones.

"If Quatre was here in himself, not trapped in ZERO, I might not succeed," he realized, fending off a particularly stubborn connection to something that was refusing to be parted from the center. "He's very strong. But ZERO weakens him, and for the moment I am glad of it."

As he endured, Hadji began to realize that something else was wrong. The spirit of Quatre was beginning to surrender to the onslaught of his efforts, the pieces having been cut away becoming more and more sluggish about fighting for connection, and the pain he felt with each exertion was lessening. A bit at a time, Hadji was forcing Quatre to break the bonds that connected him with those around him, parting the roots from the core, and a bit at a time, he was succeeding. And as each thread broke, the next was easier to sever.

Still, something was not right.

Taking a moment, Hadji glanced at himself in the astral. To his astonishment, his bare arms looked as though they had been put through a cheese grater. They were torn open, covered in welts and cuts and burns. He could feel them now that he looked, but in the moment he had ignored the pain. Or forgotten it. Practicing with Wufei had made it easier to distance himself and maintain his clarity of discipline, and apparently he had learned the lesson well.

He continued to cut the connections, knowing the number of them was dwindling almost to none, and tried to pinpoint what else might be giving him that sense of wrongness. It was a certain…lostness of himself, he eventually decided. This, too, he had experienced in practice with Wufei as a sign that he was damaging his physical body while he exerted himself in the astral. Hadji wondered what harm he was doing to himself even as he again fought to focus his metaphysical energy, though he had less to work with than he would have liked.

"But it does not matter," he thought resolutely. "If I do not succeed, ZERO will take its toll on humanity or Quatre will die. Even my life is a small price to pay to prevent that."

At last Hadji came to three large connections, more like powerful rivers than trickling streams, solid tree-roots that were the center and core of the tree itself. He felt sure one of these was the bond of Quatre's very mind to the rest of himself. Rending them would take all his remaining skill and energy. Hadji gathered himself and struck with a single, focused blow and they fell away into the nothing of the astral.

He felt himself beginning to drift, his awareness sinking. The heart of Quatre slipped in his tight grip, and it felt somehow colder, even as the scales that dotted it began to unravel completely.

Where had been a misshapen lump, a gyser burst forth, but just as quickly it began to freeze, expanding and growing, but becoming more and more still. The scales flaked off, but the soul seemed trapped all the same.

That was as much as Hadji could see before he was spinning and reeling and all awareness was dimmer and dimmer. And as the astral vanished around him, Hadji had just enough time to wonder if perhaps in severing the bonds that kept Quatre anchored to himself he had damaged his own as well.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Do something!"

"What do you want me to do?" Jonny looked at Jessie in a panic. "I'm not an expert!"

"But Jonny! _He's not breathing_!"

Jessie was crouched over the prone figure of Hadji. A minute or two after dropping back into meditation, his whole body had jerked once before keeling over to the side, his face strangely purpling and his lips taking on a bluish tint. Jonny had caught him and set him down gently, but he continued to loom over him feeling helpless. Hadji still had a pulse, and it wasn't exactly that he wasn't breathing _at all_ ; more that he simply wasn't breathing _enough_.

"Jessie, he's not dying," Jonny said, a little breathless himself. "I don't know what's going on, but there's nothing we can do. If we bring him out of it, we have no way of knowing what that will do to him or Quatre. We can't risk it!"

"If he goes much longer, though, he really will be dying," she insisted.

"We've gotta trust him, Jess. We've gotta trust that he knows what he's doing." Somehow saying it aloud made Jonny believe it, and he was able to steady himself. If anybody, _anybody_ could handle this, it was Hadji. His brother was counting on him to be guarding his back, and Jonny would not let him down.

Looking out from their hiding place, he saw that the room was mostly deserted. Apparently the retreat of their leader had been enough to urge everybody not wanting to go hand-to-hand with Wufei and Duo to find urgent business elsewhere. Wufei was combating the last stubborn individuals to one side while Duo raced around the room, reaching into his pack.

"J-man!" the braided pilot drew his attention. "Take this."

A small silver object came spinning through the air and Jonny caught it gingerly. It was a detonator. He looked up in surprise. "You _threw_ this to me?" he asked, wide-eyed.

"Knew you'd catch it. I've got something to do, so you make sure you use that when the time comes," Duo grinned at him before turning on his heel and vanishing through a nearby door.

"Jonny!" Jessie called and he turned back. Hadji was beginning to spasm. She was holding his face firmly between her hands and trying to keep his head in her lap to protect it from the metal floor.

"Is he okay?" Dr Quest called from where he was still half-under a computer station.

"He is doing what he must!" Wufei snapped, finishing with the last attacker and moving towards the console being hacked. "Our time is very short. For us to succeed you must be ready in a matter of moments."

"Don't worry," Race said with an odd serenity. "We will be." He was always at his most calm in the worst danger.

Meanwhile, Trowa had used the cover laid down by Heero to cross the room and had begun his own ascent of the central pillar. Just as Trowa joined Heero on the platform, Quatre suddenly lurched in his seat, as though he were receiving an electric shock. At the same moment, Heero faltered, almost overbalancing, and it took a swift grab from Trowa to keep him from slipping off the edge. A strange keening sound came from the blond, picked up by ZERO and transmitted eerily through the room. ZERO began beeping, the warning gauges showing that the user was in distress.

"Now Quest!" Heero ordered. He and Trowa both reached into the cockpit, Trowa putting a hand on Quatre's shoulder, Heero grabbing for a forearm. Beyond the fact that they had to anchor Quatre, keep whatever Hadji was doing from giving ZERO even more control in these last moments, neither could help but want to touch him. Whatever he was suffering, it was intense.

Benton keyed the final command and the whole room became alight in indicators flickering brightly. The pervasive hum of ZERO began to dwindle. A moment later, everything on the cockpit winked out completely.

"Yes!" cheered Race.

"We're not out of it yet," Wufei said sharply. "ZERO isn't shut down so much as withdrawing from Zero Four's head. We've got to disable it now." He caught Jonny's gaze in a glare.

"But what about…?" he trailed off, looking up at the precarious position of the three pilots above. He knew the explosives Duo had planted would probably be set not to kill them up there, but…

"Blow it!" Heero shouted.

"But..."

"Now!"

Jonny pressed the button and threw himself behind the bank of computers that was already sheltering the others. Above, Trowa and Heero braced themselves, trying to shield Quatre as much as possible. The explosions ripped through the room, triggering fires and collapses everywhere.

"Status!" Wufei demanded the instant he could be heard over the chaos.

"Unharmed," came the somewhat smoke-clogged voice of Heero.

On the platform, Trowa was very, very gently disentangling Quatre's limp body from its prison. His head lolled and a trickle of blood ran from a burned gash above one temple where the helmet had shorted out. Heero helped cut through the last restraints and Trowa swung him into his arms.

"Zero One." Trowa's breath hitched. "Get us out of here."

The former pilot of Wing Zero narrowed his eyes and refused to react to the screaming void inside where Quatre should have been. His face closed down completely into a mask of absolute death to anyone who dared cross him.

"Mission accepted."

Trowa carried his burden gingerly, using every trick in his remarkably varied list of acrobatics to swing them to the level of the others without causing more harm to Quatre. Heero followed him closely, alert for anything that might mean harm to those under his protection. Until Quatre opened his eyes and gave him different orders, Heero would eliminate anything that he deemed a threat with extreme prejudice.

Meanwhile, below, Jessie looked up to where Race had just rounded the corner of their cover and dropped to his knees before Hadji's prone form.

"His color's returning and his breathing is stabilizing," she said gratefully, "but he's still out."

"I got him," her father said, hefting Hadji in a fireman's carry. Benton hovered nearby, obviously desperate to see his son all right, but momentarily powerless.

"We're leaving," Wufei said, appearing out of nowhere and scowling blackly at the two still bodies. "I don't care what happens to Rage right now. Fall in ahead of me."

"Where's Zero Two?" Jonny asked.

"I'm right here," came the impatient voice. Duo strolled out of the smoke as though on a jaunt through the park. "Somebody had to clear us an exit."

"Scout ahead," Heero said curtly. Duo paused just long enough to glance at the blond in Trowa's arms, swallow hard, and nod. He vanished down the corridor, silent as a cat.

Heero then led the way, Trowa with Quatre right behind him. Jonny and Jessie went next, each alert for trouble. Race was just a step behind, bearing Hadji carefully, with Dr Quest guarded by Wufei at the rear. They had gone through a full section before the sound of running feet warned them of incoming trouble. Through the next doorway, they came upon Duo in the midst of a fight with three men, and holding his own quite well with his wicked-looking daggers.

"We don't have time for this," Wufei snapped.

As though that were a command, Heero pulled out his gun. He shot four times, not at any of the three fighting with Duo, but at those who had been sneaking in from the corridor beyond. Every shot was a clean kill to the heart. Duo slit the throat of his last opponent and turned back, a smear of blood bright on one pale cheek.

"Took you long enough." There should have been humor in his voice, and the fact that there wasn't was almost more chilling than the coldness with which Heero had just ended four lives.

"Stop talking. Move," came Wufei's order.

Duo fell into line beside Jonny and Jessie, his face grim and his knives still red with death. His eyes were a little overly wide and had taken on a strange color. The two exchanged a glance – they both felt pretty sure that someone would have to be crazy to attack Duo, or any of the pilots, at the moment.

Heero, still in the lead, began to push the pace to a full run, and everyone had to stay with him. As they ran, Heero picked off men at various points; one shot each and they did not get up again. Wufei, too, shot with great accuracy as a few foolish individuals thought to pursue from behind. Duo did not draw a gun, but more than once he pulled Jonny and Jessie out of the line of fire and pushed them to safety.

At last they reached the hangar where they'd left the Maganacs and the Preventers shuttle. Not even stopping to check on their allies, Heero led them to the ship. At the door, he keyed it open, then set himself at its threshold to cover them. Trowa threw himself in at all speed, moving straight to the med bay. Duo shoved Jonny and Jessie inside. Then, he darted in and left Race to yank Dr Quest with him, Hadji still over one shoulder.

"Rashid!" Wufei shouted. "We're clear!" He fired a few more times from next to Heero.

Over the din, they could hear Rashid bellowing into his suit's comm.

"Master Quatre has been retrieved. Pattern Arba!"

As the shuttle's engines came to life, Heero and Wufei retreated into the shuttle fully and closed the door as Duo piloted it easily out of the hangar and into the airlock. Both of them leaned over his shoulder and looked at the external hangar doors closed against them.

"Good thing I came prepared," Duo said tightly, pulling out another detonator from his pocket and triggering it. Explosives he'd planted much earlier blew out the doors and they were away into space. Communication came over the secured frequency from Rashid confirming that the Maganacs were on their way as well and to go ahead as they would follow and cover the shuttle's escape.

"You know the rule, men! None of you are allowed to die until given permission by Master Quatre!" he ordered.

"Yes sir!" shouted dozens of voices before they cut the connection.

"Get us back to L2 as fast as this thing can go, Duo," Wufei said curtly. "I'll call Une to send in the Preventers to clean up whatever remains."

"What about Quatre? Is he okay? He didn't look okay," Duo said, and there was worry in his voice for those who knew how to hear. When Wufei didn't answer, he looked away from the view before him. Wufei was watching Heero, who was trembling.

A moment later, Heero's hands clenched into fists and he spun and punched a bulkhead with all his strength. He ducked his head and refused to face them both.

"Katoru is alive," he said at last. "But he isn't okay. Trowa and I can't feel him. At all."


	19. Retrieval

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I'm going to do this chapter and the next 2 tonight just because they fit together in my mind. Sorry for spamming!
> 
> Also, apologies for a certain amount of mangling of the Wu Xing, which is meant entirely good-heartedly. Go read the Wikipedia article on it to see why it caught my attention and why it fits so well with our boys. I didn't do it justice, but I think you get my point.
> 
> Enjoy!

"Trowa?"

He looked up dully. Dr Quest was standing next to him, regarding him kindly through tired, worried eyes. Trowa had forgotten the man was there. For that matter, he'd forgotten all of them.

Behind him, Hadji had been placed on the bunk opposite where Quatre lay, and Race had expertly hooked up the monitors to check his condition. The rest of his family had gathered around the cot as soon as the slightly-rough takeoff would allow; his readings seemed normal, as though he were merely unconscious, and they had settled in to see if he would wake before arrival on L2.

No one had troubled the deep, dark shadow that was Trowa clinging to Quatre's hand and hovering over the bunk across the shuttle from them.

"Is there anything we can do?" Dr Quest asked after he was sure Trowa was looking at him. He'd had to almost touch the young man to get his attention, but he also knew that was a bad idea. Trowa's face was still a dire mask, and the hard glitter of his eyes did not bode well for even well-meaning but unexpected intrusions.

"He's…he's going to be okay," Jessie said, hesitantly reassuring. "We got him back."

"We'll know more when Hadji wakes up," Jonny added. "He might have an idea about what happens now."

"It can't be coincidence that they're both out," Race nodded.

Trowa said nothing, but turned back to the form that was still so distressingly still. He could hear the Quests whispering behind him, but even his well-honed defensive instincts could not rouse him to listen. He was already more vulnerable than he had ever been in his life – what did he care now if they intended him harm?

And yet it was strangely contradictory. Ever since Wufei had intervened, he hadn't sensed Quatre's emotions as he should have, which meant the fact that he could not feel their bond at all, in spite of the physical contact, was a lot less potent. His heart was still wandering the same emptiness that had been agony before they'd retrieved Quatre. But now, though, it was all the more apparent that their bond was beyond his reach, and more painful because Quatre was _right her_ e and still his soul screamed alone. Trowa didn't know how he could feel so numb and still, and yet so howlingly empty all at once.

What would he do if Quatre never woke up?

Trowa would die.

It was really that simple, and he knew it as well as he knew every precious cell of Quatre's hand tight between his own. If Quatre never woke up, never returned to himself, never filled the empty void that put the black of outer space to shame in his heart, he would die. He wouldn't even have to kill himself. The life would just fall away from him and one day he would close his eyes and never open them again. The world was airless and sunless and lifeless unless Quatre was in his heart. He'd suffocate just as surely as if he threw himself out the nearest airlock.

A sound behind him should have drawn his attention, but it didn't. He heard footsteps approaching and identified them as Wufei and Duo. But he didn't even turn. What was the point?

A moment later, darkness closed over him.

"What did you do?" Jonny demanded as Trowa slipped out of his chair, unconscious. Duo stepped around when Wufei released the pressure point he'd jabbed and caught the lanky body; the braided pilot used the weak gravity to maneuver Trowa into the bed on the far side of Quatre, pressed against the shuttle wall. He gently rearranged them both until Quatre was lying against Trowa from shoulder to hip, and took Trowa's chair for himself beside his friends.

"There's nothing Barton can do yet," Wufei answered. "He'll only drive himself deeper into himself waiting."

"Cat's gonna be fine," Duo said resolutely. "Trowa shouldn't have to torture himself in the meantime." He turned back and rested a hand on Quatre's arm, staring intently at the blond as though he could summon him by will alone.

"What about Heero?" Jonny asked, thinking of the little he knew about the bond they shared.

"I'd put him out, too, if he would let me," Wufei returned with a half-shrug. "He's piloting, which is the next best thing. It keeps his mind focused."

"What's going on with Hadji?" Race turned to the Preventers agent. "Why won't he wake up?"

"Psychic strain, I would guess. Without any other information, we have to assume he was forced to take extreme measures to ensure he cut Winner off from ZERO in order to trigger the shutdown. He knew what none of you have yet realized, that Dr Quest's virus would never have stopped ZERO enough to extract a user safely. ZERO had to already have received input that Winner was compromised for it to release him so easily."

"But what about Trowa and their bond?" Jessie asked.

"There was no guarantee Barton and Yuy, even together, would be able to call Winner from ZERO or for ZERO to recognize him as having been compromised by their interference. This ZERO was much more resilient and brutal – Quatre himself confirmed it when he met Hadji in meditation. One attack on one front would not have been enough."

"So Hadji was really the reason we got Quatre back," Dr Quest considered. "You're right; my program worked primarily because there was already data in the system suggesting that Quatre was in danger. If he hadn't been, ZERO might not have shut down at all."

"And he knew it would be so," Wufei nodded to the prone form. "We discussed it at length during his training. He knew he must provide the incentive for ZERO to bow to the other influences acting upon it, because nothing less would be sufficient for it to release Winner."

"But wait," Race held up a hand. "How did he know what kind of program Benton would run to infect ZERO, since Benton didn't finish writing it until after you'd started your training together?"

"He didn't. I surmised that the worst case scenario would be thus and arranged the situation accordingly."

The Quests looked at Wufei with surprise. He was still scowling, though, and Dr Quest felt the need to reassure him.

"That's very strategic thinking," he said warmly. "I'm impressed."

"You shouldn't be." Now Wufei's eyes were dark and hard. "Not only was my plan simplistic to the point of something a first-year recruit could have devised, but it did not work."

"Um, obviously it did," Race said, his forehead creasing, "because we're all alive and mostly unhurt and we got everybody out."

"He means," came Duo's voice, though he didn't turn around, "that if it had worked properly, Quatre would be awake. Wu-hoo over there might or might not be smarter than Cat, but nobody can plan as well. If this had been Cat's plan, nobody would still be sleeping."

"He's right. Not about the name, though, Maxwell," he growled warningly. "As we told you once before, Winner is the one who has truly mastered ZERO. Had he been with us, there would have been no need for such barbaric tactics as a psychic assault of this magnitude."

"So what happens next?" Jessie asked, not sure if she wanted to hear the answer or not.

"Yuy will return us to L2 and we will all rest in our quarters. Une has already mobilized Preventers and they should be on-site at the satellite shortly to handle whatever is left, including apprehending Rage. When we have her report, we will choose the next course of action." He paused, then looked down at the two unmoving forms of Quatre and Hadji. "As for them, they will wake eventually. Or they will not if what they have endured proves too much for their minds. But I choose to believe they are strong enough to persevere."

The small Preventers communicator at Wufei's hip beeped and he turned without another word and moved back to the forward cabin. The Quests were left looking after him as the door slid shut. Then, after a few moments, Jonny suddenly smiled.

"He's right. Hadj is totally strong, and Quatre is, too. They'll make it back in their own time. And they'll both be mad if they find out we were worrying over them while we were waiting."

"Jonny," his father began, ready to cushion the blow of his own honesty. But he looked at the light in his son's eyes and saw not deluded optimism, but real trust and hope. He felt some of the tension leave his shoulders in spite of himself. "You're probably right, son."

Jessie leaned back against her father and smiled wearily herself. "Your faith in Hadji is pretty neat, Jonny," she commented. But even she was relieved to hear the certainty in his voice. It seemed whatever Jonny believed tended to come true when he looked like that.

"You should all go rest for a while," Duo put in, finally turning around from where he had been bent over Quatre. "I'll keep an eye on them both and I'll come get you if either of them moves."

"That's a good idea," Race said before anybody else could speak up. "Come on, gang. We'll get close to an hour of shuteye before docking at L2 if we start now." And with one arm around Jessie's shoulders, one around Jonny's, and a nudge at Benton, he herded his family into the forward cabin where they could bed down on the benches. It wasn't that Race didn't want to be there when Hadji woke up, but his family had been pushing close to 40 hours without sleep except a couple of naps here and there, and he knew they wouldn't be good for anybody, Hadji included, if he didn't start looking after them. Even Benton, with his iron constitution, was looking very frayed.

And when the door slid shut again, leaving Duo alone with Hadji (behind him, but if the kid so much as batted an eye Duo would know), Trowa (out for at least an hour with that pressure-point stuff Wufei refused to teach Duo – so not fair!), and Quatre, he breathed out once, long and sad.

"Hey, Kitty-Cat. You better wake up soon, buddy. Wuffie is being a pain in the ass and Heero's gonna lose it if he ever had it to begin with and Trowa, well, you probably know better than me, so…and it doesn't do me any good either having you like this. I don't know what's going on in that head of yours, but you better fix it fast."

He brushed one hand shakily through his bangs to get them out of his face – obviously they were poking him which was why his eyes felt watery. He tightened his grip on Quatre's arm.

"I'm serious, Quatre. It almost killed us to leave you behind, and it almost killed us to see Trowa the way he is now. Maybe it would've been better if we'd never become a team in the first place because we'd be able to deal with not being a team now. But we are. And you know it. You put it there."

Duo reached out and pushed two fingers against Quatre's chest, right over his heart. His shirt hid it, but Duo knew what he would see if Quatre were bare-chested. The same mark was on his own skin.

After more than one mission together for Preventers, after their ritual of shared katas had become comfortable, one late night with a bit too much sake (for all but Quatre, who never drank) had found them discussing, of all things, mythology. And Wufei had told them of the _Wu Xing_ , the Five Chinese Elements that also corresponded to five mythical beings who, together, sought ultimate wisdom. The symmetry of the idea had appealed to all of them, and he'd expanded his explanations.

In the east there was the Dragon, element of Wood, bringer of winds and spring and new beginnings and anger and sensitivity. In the south was the Phoenix, element of Fire, bringer of passion and summer and glorious fullness and chaos and creativity. To the west was the Tiger, element of Metal, bringer of strength and autumn and waningness and sorrow and intuition. To the north was the Turtle, element of Water, bringer of change and winter and dormancy and fear and spontaneity. And in the center was the Qilin, element of Earth, bringer of balance and serenity and growth and clarity and love.

It had been obvious. Heero was the Dragon of the East, Duo was the Phoenix of the South, Wufei was the Tiger of the West, Trowa was the Turtle of the North, and Quatre was the Qilin of the Center. The five elements that worked together, that bound one another, that were irrevocably interconnected, that were weak to one another in a particular way – it echoed their very lives. Even some of their preferred forms of martial arts referred back to these five elements, and in each case they fit. It had been so profound that the five of them had felt compelled to recognize it somehow.

It was Heero, actually, who suggested that tattoos. Since four of the five were represented by constellations, it was simple enough to design four images of just the stars that made up the creatures that were the embodiments of their elements. Of course, Earth, not being a constellation, hadn't had one of its own, so for Quatre they'd simply layered their four on top of one another. And the advantage to using the constellations was that, with no lines to connect them or even a circle to encompass the marks, they were near-invisible pattern-less dots on each of their chests. There was nothing anyone could learn from them who did not already know, and that secret bound them too.

Duo knew all the tattoos by heart – he'd actually done the tattooing himself (except where he'd needed to teach Trowa since nobody can tattoo their own chest well). Almost absently, he traced the pattern of Quatre's where he knew it was. Stars. The force that guided them, the light in outer space they still fought to protect. The one-of-five that made the other four whole. The balance of being not alone. The evidence of the never-ending journey to enlightenment and peace in a life that had offered neither until they had found one another.

"I don't know what I've gotta do to make you wake up," he sighed, "so give me some help here. Okay?"

He withdrew his hand from Quatre's chest, mussing the soft blond hair momentarily before settling his fingers against Quatre's wrist, counting the beats of his pulse against his own. He closed his eyes. Even if he didn't have a mystical cosmic bond with Quatre the way the other two did, he was his best friend. And there _was_ a quietness where there should have been comfort. He wondered if that was what Heero and Trowa felt a million times worse. He wasn't sure his heart could have managed it.

"I'm here, Cat. I'm not going anywhere. I'll be here when you come back. Don't keep me waiting."

 

-==OOO==-

 

Hadji was floating.

"Well, that much is good," he thought to himself. "Being able to think is a vast improvement over nothingness."

Even though his sense of humor was intact, however, he felt inexpressibly weary. Putting words together, even simple ones, felt like an impossible effort. He vaguely recalled a conversation with Wufei towards the end of their training and the warning that he might exhaust himself if he had to push too hard against Quatre's defenses. Apparently it had happened.

Slowly, more thoughts came to Hadji as he fought to keep himself awake in the tiredness that threatened to claim him.

"Since I am obviously not yet awake in the mundane world, I must still be somewhere between myself and the astral plane. I must find a way to return."

Even that simple realization seemed to restore some of his energy, and Hadji took heart from that. He was not isolated or beyond help here. He could help himself.

"Something must bind me to myself. I need only find and follow it."

As though conjured, he felt a sudden tug at his hip. Looking down (and grateful he could see his spiritual body, that he was close enough to himself not to be without corporeal form as he was on the true astral plane), he found that something was bound tightly about his waist like a seatbelt. It took him a moment, and when he identified it he threw back his head and laughed.

For what was holding him, the tether that would lead him home, was one of Jonny's shoelaces stretched infinitely long.

"Perfectly sound metaphor, though," he considered. "The tie that leads me back to my real life must be something stronger than my own desire, as I am too fatalistic in my own approach to things and too prone to simply remain where I find myself. And of course it must be Jonny. As for the shoelace," he grinned, "there is no better illustration of our journey together than the mechanism that keeps our shoes on our feet in readiness for adventure."

The shoelace stretched into the darkness, but Hadji felt entirely cheered. Not only did he have a course of action, but he was not alone even here so deep in his own mind he was almost out of the world completely. His family was here with him. He would not be lost as long as they held him.

Hadji began the long process of following the shoelace towards all that awaited him.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"So…how is he?" Auda called hesitantly.

Rashid looked up, his face betraying little, but the heaviness of his chest was unforgettable. He turned fully away from the suit he had been repairing to face the Maganac who had come to him for answers. And, looking over the hangar, others had paused in their labors to listen. He sighed.

"All right, men. I'll tell you what I can."

Rashid let himself down easily from the suit, making note of another place the outer shell had been pierced in the battle at the terrorist installation. For a mere space-repair unit, it had handled the combat remarkably well. Of course, with the Maganac Corp to modify the suits, he would have expected no less. They were nothing if not highly-skilled mechanics as well as pilots.

"I'm only going to say this once, so listen now." To a man, every one of the Maganacs left whatever they were doing and gathered near. Even Howard and a few of his Sweeper allies whom Rashid knew were allies to Duo hedged close to the group to try to overhear. Rashid cleared his throat and raised his head.

"As you all know, we were successful in retrieving Master Quatre from the terrorists who had held him captive. I have seen him myself and can confirm that he is largely unharmed."

There was a rumble in the ranks of the Maganacs at his word "largely." One or two were hotheaded enough to take offense to even a scratch on their Master. It was a good show of loyalty, but shortsighted and unreasonable. Master Quatre was a warrior. When he inserted himself into a situation, blood was bound to flow and they ought to recognize this by now. Even if privately Rashid wished to pay back the terrorists tenfold for every drop spilled; it was his right to be unreasonable about Master Quatre, after all. The boy was as good as a son to him as well as Master. But that was his prerogative after all.

"Shortly after the shuttle docked, the one who was instrumental in removing Quatre from the device that had imprisoned him, body and mind, regained consciousness for a few minutes. He appears to be suffering nothing more than a simple overload and will recover quickly, though he is resting once more."

Rashid was careful not to mention ZERO directly. The Maganacs could all be trusted, and indeed, they knew of the system at least enough – only Rashid himself knew all. But there were outsiders here, and no matter how fond Duo might be of them, Rashid would not risk it.

"Master Quatre is still unconscious and has not responded to any sort of stimuli yet. He is being watched at all times by those he trusts the most, and they assure me we will know the instant he is awake. Until then, there is nothing we can do to help him but keep him in our thoughts and trust to the will of Allah."

"Rashid," that was Abdul with a hand raised for attention, "what do the other two say?"

It was carefully phrased, and Rashid nodded that he'd understood. Again, they could all be trusted with the fact of Master Quatre's bond with Heero Yuy, not to mention his relationship with Master Trowa. It was likely Master Quatre would never have let the Maganacs as a whole know the extent of his connection to the other two former pilots; however, one particular experience when he had been visiting with them and Heero Yuy had been injured on a nearby mission had made his intentions moot when to a man they had near-panicked when their Master had sensed his friend's danger and reacted. They all knew, even if they did not all fully comprehend the extent of that bond, and even less the one with his lover, but it was enough. Trowa Barton was "Master" in more than name only, though he would never command the Maganacs as Master Quatre did; still, as consort to their Master, and the first among them who protected him when they were not there, he had earned their respect.

Rashid straightened his spine even more. He would not prevaricate, especially with the men before him, not when it came to Master Quatre. They deserved nothing less than the truth. But he still had to be circumspect with the outsiders present and listening.

"They are both deeply concerned. They have not been able to wake him themselves, and I believe they have tried all they know. It is now left to Master Quatre alone when he will rejoin us."

He didn't mention that there was uncertainty as to how much of Master Quatre might wake and return at all, that the ZERO System may well have damaged him and changed him. He did not need to say it – a look at the faces before him told him every one of his men already knew. In their hearts, they knew.

Rashid reached into an inner pocket and drew forth the goggles. The symbol of leadership that had once been his, that he had given to a 13-year-old boy who had saved his life and taken a bullet that would have been fatal, a boy who had led his men with courage and conviction when he seemed to have none for himself. He had carried them with him for many years before entrusting them and the fate of the Maganacs to Master Quatre. Now he only carried them when his Master could not.

It had nearly broken his heart when Trowa had handed them to him upon his arrival on L2, knowing somewhere his Master was in danger and had not even this token to assure him his people would come for him.

"These," he said, holding them up, every man knowing the import of them, "I will protect until Master Quatre can take them up once more. The Maganacs will have no other Master and no other leader. We are his until every one of us has died in his service."

"For Master Quatre!" the cry went up. As one, the Maganacs bellowed their support.

A lump unexpectedly formed in Rashid's throat and he yelled with them to clear it. These men, his men, every one of them would give up their life for Master Quatre, for a boy who cared so much for them that he fought his battles alone to spare them. A boy who had the best tactical mind any of them had ever encountered, who was wealthier than most kings of history, and yet knew each man by name, knew their families, ensured they had work and the means to support themselves without charity. Master Quatre was the heart of the Maganacs, loved like a son, trusted like a brother, and revered as Master. He would not fail to return to them. Rashid had to believe that.

"Then get back to work, every one of you!" Rashid's booming voice roared as the shouting died down. "Repair your machines as needed. We may yet have a battle before us, and we will show those who dare face us the power and wrath of the Maganacs Corp!"


	20. Recovery

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry again for any spamming!
> 
> Enjoy!

When no one responded to her fourth knock, Jessie pushed her head in the door slightly. She should not have been surprised to find herself looking down the barrel of more than one gun.

"It's just me," she said quickly. "Sorry. Didn't you hear me knock?"

"Don't be so stupid," Wufei said dismissively, rolling his eyes and lowering the weapon. "Of course we heard it. We also assumed that a closed door was enough of a sign for people to keep out."

Normally Jessie would have taken offense, but this time she let it pass. She could see the weariness in all four of the pilots, and she couldn't really blame them for being jumpy. Quatre hadn't woken up yet.

"So what did you need?" Duo asked, obviously trying to sound at least friendly and mostly managing it. He stopped fiddling with the gun he'd pulled on her and set it back on the table next to him. Jessie wondered if that was a good idea – when Quatre woke, if he was like how Jonny had described Heero's reaction after ZERO, he would be able to reach it from the small bed against the wall where she assumed the others had pushed it (probably to better protect him in their not-totally-unjustified paranoia). Then she remembered who she was looking at; all four Gundam pilots were seated on or around the bed, not only an honor guard for their fallen member, but also close enough to sit on him before anything went wrong.

"Hadji's awake again, and coherent this time," she said, stepping into the room. She resolutely did not look at Heero Yuy, who had only just lowered his gun but had not relaxed his defensive posture. "He says he doesn't really know why Quatre isn't awake yet, but he is willing to try to help if you want."

"No," Wufei said curtly. "He has been through enough strain for now. If he recovers his energy and still there has been have no change, then perhaps we will ask it of him. For now, it would probably do more harm than good."

"That's kinda what we told him," Jessie gave a small, rueful smile, "but he wouldn't stop annoying us until somebody came to offer for him."

She expected some kind of response, a joke or even just an acknowledgment of her words, but none was forthcoming. Trowa hadn't even looked up at her when she'd entered and hadn't moved since. Duo and Heero were still watching her, but Wufei had dismissed her entirely and turned back towards Quatre's still form in the bed. She shifted from one foot to another.

"Um…do you want me to tell him anything from you? Or…do you need something?" she finally hedged.

"Not really," Duo replied. Jessie didn't know which of her questions he had answered and decided to take it for both.

"Okay then. Just…let us know when there's a change, all right? And if we can do anything?"

"We will." Duo now also looked away, leaving her only with Heero's unmoving gaze.

"Stop pitying us," he said surprisingly, his eyes intensifying as he rose and approached her.

"I'm not…I mean, I don't, but…" Jessie was caught flat-footed and stumbled for a response.

"We are where we belong. Quatre has never failed us. If he needs time, we will make sure he has it. If he wakes up less than himself, we will restore him. You give up on him too easily. We have not." Heero moved forward and stepped right into Jessie's space. With the door at her back, she had no retreat.

"I haven't given up on anybody," she said defiantly, meeting his eyes with conviction.

"Good," he said, nodding once. Then he reached behind her, pulled open the door, and in one smooth motion used her shoulder to push her through it, shutting it and locking it behind her.

"Was that necessary?" Wufei asked, though he did crack a slight smile at the squawk of surprise that was faint through the thick material of the door.

"Yes."

Nobody said anything, but even Duo couldn't completely disagree with his action. It wasn't that they didn't like the Quests, or that Jessie had been a problem, not exactly. But the four of them were vulnerable and Quatre even more so, and even if she posed no threat she was still a foreign influence among them and they did not have time for that. In the end, they always trusted only themselves.

They settled back into their positions. Heero had the chair nearest to the head of the bed, and he was leaning half against the mattress as he turned his body on an angle to the door, watchful just in case. Duo was perched on the bed near Quatre's middle, absently fiddling with the sheets and sometimes moving to take Quatre's pulse again, even though he could see it beating in the pale throat. Wufei had the next chair and sat with his arms tight to his sides, eyes closed. Trowa was sitting cross-legged on the foot of the bed leaning against the wall, staring almost unblinkingly at his lover's face. They had offered him Heero's seat, but he had shaken his head and taken up the farthest away and least protective place to their surprise. But no one asked. If Trowa wished to explain, he would.

They had been in these positions since taking Quatre off the Preventers ship in the hangar more than two hours ago. They had spoken to no one, until Jessie who had dared to enter the room, and they accepted nothing from anyone nor asked for help. What no one saw (because no one was permitted) was the quiet way they leaned on one another as they waited and worried. When Duo's fiddling became frenetic, Heero would put a stilling hand on his shoulder. When Wufei noticed Trowa beginning to edge away from them all, body and mind, he grunted and tugged on the acrobat's ankle until he stopped. Heero and Wufei shared wary glances when one or the other seemed to need it. And every now and then one of them would reach out, tentatively touch Quatre, and hold their breath, wondering if this time, _this time_ it would be the impetus to a change.

When it happened, it caught them all off-guard.

About four hours into their vigil, Quatre's face, normally pale and paler still since they'd pulled him out of ZERO, suddenly flushed a very dark red. His whole body seized up and he began shaking violently.

"What's happening?" Duo asked, the wrist beneath his fingers yanked from him as Quatre began to convulse.

"I don't know," Wufei bit back. He had stood so quickly his chair had gone flying backwards and was now leaning over his friend, worry etched in his face.

"Katoru. Katoru, listen to me," Heero said urgently, putting both hands on either side of Quatre's face. "Fight to return to us, but do not fight us."

The blond Arab gave a choking, half-strangled yell and his eyes snapped open, but they were totally unseeing. He lurched to a sitting position and began pushing against the comforting hands that reached for him.

"Cat! Cat, it's us!" Duo said, just ducking a near blow to the ear.

"Constrain him," Wufei ordered sharply. "He'll hurt himself before he knows he's safe."

Three bodies jumped as one, wrapping themselves carefully around Quatre. Heero maneuvered himself behind the struggling pilot, pinning his arms down at the shoulders and pulling him tight against his chest. Quatre lashed with his head and would have smashed Heero's chin upward except he wasn't fast enough in his feral state to out-fight the Perfect Soldier. Duo dove lower, twining his arms around Quatre's stomach and holding his hands and forearms trapped against himself. Fingers contracted and tried to claw at him, but Duo shifted and they were pinned between their bodies. Wufei had simply thrown himself across Quatre's legs and sat on them at the knee to keep him from kicking.

For a few moments they struggled, until Trowa appeared on Quatre's other side, nearest the wall. His green eyes were wide and empty, but there was something more in them than there had been for many hours. He moved slowly, cautiously, and cupped his lover's cheek delicately, eyes fluttering closed.

It was not immediate, but a few heartbeats later Quatre's frantic struggles began to slow. His eyes were still wild and incoherent, though. But something else was happening. As he became more still in their grips, the very room seemed to be getting warmer. All four of them felt it, felt their skin start to heat as though they had fallen into a steam room.

And then a lance like lightning and fire and ice and wind together struck them simultaneously.

Only Heero managed to keep his grip, and that partially because he was trapped against the headboard of the bed; the other three were physically thrown back, not by Quatre, but by their own reflexes driving them from the source of that feeling. It went beyond words. It was violent but did not exactly hurt, it was powerful and overwhelming but not evil, and it filled their eyes with swimming colors and their ears with roaring, pounding blood.

Wufei was the first to recover, hauling Trowa to his feet from where he'd actually dived off the bed and putting a hand on Duo's elbow to steady him.

"What the hell was that?" Duo demanded.

"Quatre," Heero answered, not looking up. He still held Quatre against his chest, but the blond's head was lolling on his shoulder now. And his face was twitching slightly. "He is returning to himself."

And when Heero finally met their surprised eyes with his own, the dark blue that burned was no longer empty. Heero practically glowed with it – his connection to Quatre had been reforged, it was absolutely clear. But a glance to Trowa showed no such transformation.

"Hey, Cat," Duo said, rushing forward and practically sitting on Quatre's arm in his hurry to get near. He just needed to know it was real. He grabbed Quatre's hand and squeezed it gently. "Wake up, buddy."

"Can you try to be slightly less annoying?" Wufei muttered, righting his chair and scooting it closer with one hand, practically forcing Trowa into Heero's abandoned seat with the other.

"Nope! I'm as annoying as always, and don't you forget it, Chitty-Chitty-Chang-Chang!"

"Why you!" Wufei's face became as red as a tomato. "That's _really_ going too far!"

But a sudden snort of a giggle drew everyone's attention. The corners of Quatre's lips had turned up in a soft smile and his eyes blinked slowly. And they were alive with the soul they knew.

"It's not…very nice…but you have to admit…it _is_ pretty funny," he said quietly, a bit weakly.

"Cat! You're okay!" Duo whooped.

"More or less," Heero rumbled from behind him. Quatre squeezed Duo's hand and settled against the strong chest that supported him.

"If he believes your juvenile names are funny, Maxwell, then he may not yet have regained his senses," Wufei grumbled, even as he shifted closer and his annoyed face gave way to a certain resignation.

"Where…?" Quatre looked around. Then, seeing Trowa, he sucked in a harsh breath. "Oh, Trowa. Oh, love, what's happened?"

The confusion and outright pain in Quatre's face made everyone turn to Trowa. His expression was contorted, half neutral and half suffering, and his eyes glittered with emotions that chased themselves so quickly only an empath could have caught them all.

"What do you remember?" Wufei asked gently, trying to distract Quatre in the hope that Trowa would do what he needed to do to return to himself and stop troubling his lover.

"I remember the mission," he said, brows furrowing as he thought. "I remember being separated, and the cell. And I remember…"

"You remember deciding _all on your own_ to try to use ZERO to take command of Rage's operation," Heero said roughly. "You remember leaving us and letting them put you in that thing."

"Oh, stop being so mean to him, Hee-chan. Cat did what he thought he had to for our sakes. You know that," Duo swiped at Heero's head and, because the pilot was mostly immobile wrapped around Quatre as he was, he managed a half of a smack.

"I'm sorry," came Quatre's contrite voice. "I'm so, so sorry. I thought if only I could control ZERO…"

"You did, for a while," Wufei interrupted. "You ensured the escape of everyone but yourself. Until you were compromised by Rage."

"He was in my heart…he put all his hate into me and…oh Allah," Quatre closed his eyes and reached a hand to the back of his neck as the phantom memory of that terrible mind made him need to reassure himself that no one was there. To his surprise, he encountered a bandage and as he prodded at it, a burning pain bloomed. "What is this?"

"Rage," and Duo's eyes were creepily furious. "He dug his fingers into your spine practically. You've got a hell of a bruise and even some open cuts from where he was grabbing you."

"If I'd known that, I'd have taken his hand off," Heero said completely seriously.

Seeing Quatre's eyes widen as his recollection of Ezekiel Rage came back more fully, Wufei caught his wrist and held it, projecting calm and safety. Quatre shot him a shaky smile of gratitude and something buzzed in Wufei's heart.

"I remember something about Hadji," he said. "In my mind."

"That's right," Duo nodded. "He said you gave him the idea to try to stop you with all that crazy psychic stuff so we could get you out of ZERO. And it worked!"

"Is he okay?" Quatre wanted to know.

"He's fine now," Heero nodded, knowing Quatre would feel the truth of his words. "Don't worry."

"And you're…you're all okay?" His bright eyes were wide as he looked over each of them. Their emotions were chaotic, but he could not see or sense any significant physical damage to any of them. They nodded and he relaxed a bit. But then he turned back to Trowa.

"What…what happened to you?" Quatre asked, biting his lip.

Trowa dropped his eyes. He tipped his head so his face was hidden, a habit from when he was alone, lost, and vulnerable.

"Tro hasn't really been normal since we lost track of you, Cattie," Duo said, trying to lighten the mood. "Not that he was normal to begin with." It fell rather flat. Still, Quatre managed a smile at the attempt and Duo felt something in his stomach shift.

"I'm sorry for making you all worry. I'm sorry for not being able to do anything to help," Quatre began.

"Oh no you don't," Heero cut him off.

"Really! You'd be sorry that space is too cold if we'd let you!" Duo added.

"We did nothing less than you would do for each of us in return," Wufei said solidly. "There is no shame in any of the choices you made, no matter what Yuy thinks."

"Mostly," Trowa spoke at last, "we're sorry for what you had to go through. ZERO…it hurt. And Rage. You shouldn't have to hurt like that."

Quatre swallowed at the sullen emptiness of Trowa's voice and nodded, throat closed as much from the pain of what he could sense radiating from his lover as from the memories that were still so alive in his heart. He could almost still feel that grip on the back of his neck flooding him with genocidal, maniacal hatred. And that, caught up in ZERO…he shuddered.

"You're all right now," and there was nothing at all condescending in Wufei's voice. "Your shields are probably in tatters and you have been through more psychic exertion than your share, but you are with us. We won't let you be lost there again."

Quatre nodded and closed his eyes, pulling the familiar warmth of the four around him as a child curls into a blanket for comfort. Well, three of the four – Trowa felt so alien and cut off and incomprehensible even if he was, under it all, still Quatre's Trowa. Heero and Duo and Wufei he could feel clearly, though, as clearly as when they did a kata together, maybe even moreso. Wufei must be right – his shields were gone.

And Trowa in his state of whatever-it-was was like a screaming beacon of pain and fear and loss and confusion.

Quatre looked over his shoulder and shot Heero a pleading, helpless look. He couldn't bring himself to ask for what he clearly needed, but he trusted in their bond, and in Heero being Heero, to understand. Heero nodded and rose from his seat, carefully disentangling himself.

"Come on," he said, and Duo and Wufei read the message in his face and rose also.

"Rest," Wufei said not unkindly. "When you are feeling stronger, we will have more to discuss." He inclined his head in a very slight bow, but Quatre could sense all of what he could not say. He closed his eyes and returned the bow sincerely, hand over his heart.

"We'll be right outside, so shout if you need something," Duo bounced on his heels for a moment. Then he darted forward and threw an arm around Quatre's shoulders, careful to avoid the wound on his neck. "Glad you're back, Cat." He said it so very softly and squeezed so very tightly. And there were definitely not tears in his eyes. Definitely not.

"Thank you, Duo," he answered warmly, managing to get an arm around his friend and returning the half hug.

Duo let go after a moment and shuffled to the door ahead of Wufei, disappearing through it without looking back. Wufei paused, and something silent passed between him and Heero before he continued on his way out. Heero looked carefully at Quatre for a long moment before sitting on the bed again. He didn't say anything. He didn't look away from Quatre's face.

Quatre swallowed against all the roiling emotions he could sense in his friend, cresting and breaking against one another mercilessly. Love and anger and regret and relief and worry and fury and a hundred shades of everything else formed a patchwork mix of chaos. And the deepest, brightest of them all was the burning importance of their bond, the absolute certainty that Quatre was not lost from Heero's life.

Quatre closed his eyes and reached out, tipping their foreheads together gently. Their hair mingled, golden and deep brown, and Quatre sent all of his assurance into the heart before him. He encouraged the calm he felt stealing over Heero, and waited until he felt his friend breathe out a great deal of his inner turmoil. His hand still on the back of Heero's head, he tightened his fingers slightly, a reminder, a hug, a confirmation.

Heero nodded against him and his emotions quieted. He pulled back and stared intently at Quatre, saying nothing still. But his emotions were more than clear enough: _You are safe now. And I will keep you that way, no matter what_. Firm and familiar resolve settled into his heart and he stood. His eyes flicked to Trowa momentarily before looking back to Quatre. Heero might not be an empath, but he knew much was wrong. So he turned to him and finally spoke.

"The only way to live a good life is to act on your emotions, Trowa," he said simply. Trowa's face creased in a bit of confusion and Quatre instinctively reached for him. But when Trowa didn't move to take the outstretched hand, Heero scowled. He looked back at Quatre. "If he continues to be a _baka_ , let me know. I'll beat some sense into him."

Quatre's grateful smile for his protectiveness, and humor, was enough to settle him completely. He turned and left the room. He leaned against the closed door for a heartbeat before shaking himself of everything but focus – there was still work to be done, and it was long past when he should have started on it.

"Trowa?" Quatre asked hesitantly as he sensed Heero moving away..

"Yes?" His voice was distant, and it reminded Quatre horribly of when Trowa had been without his memories.

"Trowa, talk to me, tell me what's happened to you," Quatre pleaded. "I can't block you. You've got to let me do something to ease this..." he trailed off, rubbing a hand on his sternum almost hard enough to bruise, eyes beginning to water. The _wrongness_ of it all hurt.

In one movement, Trowa was beside him on the bed, taking his hands in his own and hunching close to Quatre. The contact ignited their bond and both were suddenly awash in almost immeasurable panic and fear and loss and pain. The relief that should have been present just wasn't. Trowa's heart was still tearing itself apart because Quatre was still lost.

"No," the blond said around a tight throat, "I'm here. You saved me."

Love and trust and hope thundered through their bond as Quatre pushed his feelings forward, projecting as hard as he could. Allah, why couldn't Trowa see that he was all right? He was _right here_ , feeling like himself, and it was like Trowa couldn't...oh no.

"Trowa," Quatre said softly, slowly, eyes widening in realization. "Trowa, Wufei had you shield to protect you from me while I was in ZERO. I understand now."

He breathed deeply and looked, really looked, because somewhere around the edges of Trowa's feelings would be the wrong he had to right. Knowing Wufei, Quatre surmised he must have come up with a way to help Trowa block their bond when Quatre was overpowered by Rage. But that block was still in place, and so their connection was frayed and unbalanced, and it was tearing Trowa apart from the inside. And it would never have occurred to Wufei to remind Trowa to undo it because it would have been so obvious to Wufei to be not worth mentioning, as he sometimes forgot not everyone could see as far ahead as he could. Like a shadow or a tint of color, Quatre sought the very slight signs that would tell him what his beloved had had to do to keep clear-headed enough to function. And once he knew what he was looking for, identifying it was easy, and not entirely surprising. Some emotions, or even mental constructs, have very distinctive signatures, after all.

"Trowa," he whispered. "It's time to come out of Heavyarms now."

Quatre closed his eyes and remembered the first time they'd met. Remembered his anger and his certainty that this Gundam before him should be his ally and not his opponent. Remembered the surge of passionate trust that had compelled him out of Sandrock, leaving himself totally exposed. Remembered the whisper of surprise that had met his heart before the hatch had revealed Trowa, arms up in surrender. Remembered his own huff of laughter at the sudden knowledge that Trowa had decided that he, having thrown his safety aside first, was the stronger, and wished to bend to that strength.

Quatre focused on that image, focused on that drawing-forth sense, that instant connection, that critical trust.

"Trowa, love, please. Please open the door again. I'm waiting for you here."

There was a terrible moment of silence, and then a muffled sound that came from deep in Trowa's chest. His feelings took on that clarity that spoke of his thoughts and Quatre could practically see him in his mind's eye opening the familiar hatch. His whole body tensed as though in unbearable pain, and just as quickly it melted and Trowa slid hard into Quatre's shoulder. Quatre enfolded him.

"Qua...Quatre?" he rasped.

"Trowa. I'm here. I'm all right." And Quatre felt a tear of his own slip as his incredible, impossible love for this amazing man engulfed him. Trowa had been as imprisoned as he had been, locked up not in the horrors of an insane mind and the ZERO System, but in a cage no less damaging, and one of his own making, of his own nightmares.

"God, Quatre...I love you," Trowa managed. As the shock of releasing his emotions began to recede, Trowa felt his bond with Quatre settle. Now, at last, relief and certainty and safety came back to him and he turned in his lover's embrace until he had managed to get his arms around Quatre and held on as though he needed to hold him like he needed to breathe. He could also sense that Quatre was relieved, his own spiky energies beginning to ease themselves, even as they grew as his strength returned.

"I love you, Trowa," and the helpless laugh that broke from Quatre was nearly hysterical. "Thank you for doing what you had to do to save me, but please don't ever get lost in yourself like that again. As frightened as you were when you couldn't feel me, not being able to feel you is even scarier."

Trowa didn't say anything to that, but he nuzzled his head against Quatre's shoulder. The void that had almost overwhelmed him was gone, filled instead with pounding, near-frantic love as Quatre clung to him just as tightly. They had never come so close to losing one another. They'd both been hurt in battles before, but this was different. This wasn't that one might die. This was that they might both live on and never ever look at one another without emptiness where there should have been so much more.

Wrapped up together, their emotions melded and they sank into their connection beyond where anyone could ever have found them. There are few words for what they experienced, but if asked, the closest would have been two voices speaking in unison, tripping over each other as they became one.

_You are here. I need you here. I breathe in and you are the fullness before I breathe out again, and the stillness between my heartbeats is when I listen for yours. And you trust my heartbeat, come hell or high water. In the worst storms your mind creates to torment you, you flee to my arms and it doesn't matter what I say aloud and what I whisper inside myself – you hear it all and you trust it and you find your center again. You tuck yourself under my chin and hang on for the ride and you trust, you know that I will carve us a path and never surrender until I deem the world about us tamed and safe enough to deserve you._

_You are my heart. You are the center around which I revolve, and around which I bend all things in our orbit. You are the gift I can never earn nor deserve in this life, and this feeling, this stupid, melodramatic, impossible, foolish emotion that wells up until there is no room in me for anything but the desire for poetry because only poetry could maybe possibly come close to expressing it all, this feeling has become my addiction. It has become the beginning and end of all that matters. It is my greatest weakness and the source of my every worthwhile strength._

_I love you and I am you and you are me and there is no end to this and no greater truth. Your heart holds mine and even the world is not great enough or wide enough to encompass all this feeling. If you were not here to guard it, it would crack the stars. How can I smile even once more without breaking apart from this exquisite sensation? Alone I would shatter – it is only because your love holds mine up that I am whole._


	21. Interviews

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was hard. But I feel like it fills out the other two nicely. Gave Quatre his moment – now it's Hadji's turn!
> 
> Enjoy!

"How are you feeling?"

Hadji looked up to see Dr Quest coming in with a tray. He managed a smile. "I still have something of a headache, but otherwise I believe I am fully recovered."

"I can't tell you how glad I am to hear it," Benton smiled as he set the tray on a table next to the bed. He pulled up a seat of his own. "Here. I thought you might want something."

"Oh, Dr Quest," Hadji opened his eyes comically wide, "you have brought me tea. You have my loyalty forever."

"Yes, Jonny said you might feel that way," he chuckled, pouring a cup and handing it to the young man fixed with lemon as he took it. Then he made a cup for himself with milk and no sugar. "I believe he would be here fighting with you for the cookies, but Race conveniently found something to keep him and Jessie occupied, possibly chasing Bandit out of the Preventers hangar."

"Business as usual, then," Hadji replied, breathing in the warmth of his cup of tea. "Dr Quest, can you tell me if Quatre is well?"

"Yes, that's the other reason I came in," he nodded and took a sip. "Quatre is awake and from what I have been told, he is all right. Chang Wufei wishes to speak to you about precisely what you did, but I told him you might not be ready just yet."

"I…am very relieved to hear that Quatre is well," Hadji felt a tension he had not been willing to acknowledge begin to slide from him. "And I would be happy to speak to Agent Chang if I can be of some help."

"Do you feel up to such an interview now or would you prefer to wait?"

"We may as well get through it while all is fresh in my mind," Hadji answered. "I am certain Agent Chang will appreciate the clarity of my thoughts as they are now before I muddle them with assumptions." He smiled wryly.

"I understand. Would you like me to leave you alone for it?" It was obvious that he did not want to separate from his adopted son, but he could not help but offer.

"No, certainly not. There is nothing I would say that I do not feel comfortable sharing with you, Dr Quest," Hadji reassured him.

Dr Quest nodded and rose to summon the Preventers agent, while Hadji prepared a cup of tea from the tray for him. Within minutes, Wufei had settled himself on a chair next to the bed, teacup in hand. Hadji had motioned to get out of bed and face him properly, but was outvoted.

"I hardly care whether you are balancing on your head or sitting there," Wufei said dismissively. "It is foolish to stand on false pride."

"I know you are mostly recovered," Benton added, "but there's no reason to rush."

"Very well. Then, Agent Chang, I suppose I am at your disposal. Ask what you will," Hadji leaned back. He really did feel mostly fine, but it was a relief not to have to hold up himself if he became fatigued.

"Winner has said next to nothing to me," he began, "but he does seem to remember you in his mind somehow. Perhaps if you could tell me what you experienced, I would be better able to analyze precisely what you accomplished."

Hadji nodded and explained, as best he knew how, what he had seen and done while in his meditation. He vividly remembered the bright spirit of Quatre, the choking shell of scales that had covered it, and his decision to disrupt all the branches leading outward in an attempt to interfere with ZERO. As with his previous lesson with Wufei, he was allowed to speak uninterrupted through the end of his recollection once before the questions began.

"Did you have any sense for what those branches or 'roots' as you call them might have been?"

"I believed they were his empathic bonds or his awareness of others, and that by interfering with them he would become unsettled."

"Did they seem to resist being cut?"

"Yes, quite severely. It took all my strength to break some of them."

"Is it possible the breaking of those connections is the reason it took Winner so long to wake up?"

"Entirely. I suspected that one of those may have been the connection of his spiritual self to his body, and that by cutting that I would cause him to become psychically dislocated, which would have the greatest possible impact on ZERO. Still, it seemed necessary as you had impressed on my the importance of ensuring complete success in my part of the mission."

"What happened to the shell of scales when you were cutting through the connections?"

"It seemed to melt away or dissolve after prolonged exposure to my psychic interference."

"And you believe this shell was the manifestation of ZERO which was strangling Winner's spiritual essence, lessening and confining him?"

"That was my assumption, yes."

"Why did you not just focus on eliminating the scales, then, and leave the branches alone?"

That question brought Hadji up short and he had to consider before answering. "I suppose it never really occurred to me. Cutting the connections outward seemed the most logical course of action." Before Wufei could launch another barrage, he held up a hand. "Did my actions cause harm to Quatre?"

The Chinese agent looked into Hadji's eyes intensely for a moment before saying, "We don't think so. Not permanently."

"But there was some sort of effect? Something happened. Please, you must tell me," Hadji leaned forward, cold gripping his throat.

"When Quatre was pulled out of ZERO, Yuy and Barton reported that they could not sense their bond with him. It was not until after he had woken that it seemed to repair itself," he said simply.

"So Hadji succeeded?" Benton put in. "He actually did cut Quatre off from the people around him."

"So it seems."

Hadji let out a slow breath and curled his hands into fists. "Then I have done my friend a terrible wrong."

"I fail to see how," Wufei said.

He looked up at the two men facing him, one with near-contempt and one quizzically. Somehow, the fact that neither seemed to understand his reaction upset him even more. He glared at the Preventers agent angrily.

"I may well accept that we had little choice but to attack Quatre or risk losing his life," he bit out, "but do not expect me to blithely ignore the fact that I have acted against my own code of honor and ethics in this. Even if the effects were not permanent, I have used my gift for evil, to cause harm to a fellow human-being. No justification absolves me of that."

"Hadji," Dr Quest looked concerned, "I know you didn't mean to hurt Quatre, and if there had been any other way…"

"If I do not intend to cause harm, and yet I do, am I free of the blame or the guilt?" he returned. "I took action I deemed necessary, but the cost to both our souls may have been too great." He looked at Wufei with a dark smile that was not at all happy. "If Quatre's bonds had not come back, if I had permanently harmed his empathy, can you say for certain I would not be visited by an agent of vengeance, or two, and perhaps rightly so?"

"Yuy and Barton would not hurt you if it had been permanent," Wufei said solidly. "Winner ordered them not to, apparently. Besides, they would know better. Eliminating you would not solve the problem. They could demand you repair it, but that would be fairly reasonable, I think."

At that, some of the fire leeched out of Hadji and he took a breath. He was becoming overly upset and losing his perspective. He breathed in and out a few times, gathering his thoughts.

"I have long cherished my belief," he said after a minute of stillness, "that we are called upon to create good in the world, to seek enlightenment, and to harm none on our journey. Forgive me for my vehemence. It is…disturbing to learn that I have inadvertently tread so close to breaking my own oaths."

"Hadji, if you cannot forgive yourself for saving the life of a friend, I fear there is no wisdom I can offer you," Benton said gently, "but I hope you know that I do not hold you in less than the highest regard no matter your feelings on the matter. In my experience, there is no black and white, no absolutes. And amidst the shades of grey, you did the best you could do. It may not have been ideal, but Quatre is alive thanks to your efforts. I hope that offers you some solace."

"I do not agree with your philosophy, but I respect you for holding to such a code of honor," Wufei said suddenly, meeting Hadji's gaze steadily. "In my long search for justice I committed many injustices myself. I have been mistaken many times, led astray by my own pride. A man must follow his honor. I will not apologize for asking you to do this, because without you I believe we would not have been able to save Quatre, and his life is worth more to me than your ethics. But I do not believe you have dishonored yourself. It is only my belief, however. You are permitted to disagree."

"What is justice?" Hadji found himself asking.

"I am still not sure," Wufei admitted quietly, "but it would not be justice for Quatre to die. That I do know. If you have betrayed yourself, you must face it. But I believe the greater injustice would have been to do nothing."

"I…will have to think about this," Hadji said, nodding. "I feel ill at ease, but perhaps that is because I am acutely aware that I took away that which my friend cherishes – his bonds to others. The memory of doing such is rather fresh and painful, doubly so now that I realize fully the consequences of my choice. Perhaps I will feel differently when I am assured he has forgiven me my actions."

"I think you will feel a lot better when you can see Quatre and prove to yourself he's okay," Dr Quest agreed. "Until then, try not to think on it so harshly, Hadji. I know you intended no harm. In my book, that's worth a lot."

"Perhaps," he replied. But even so, Hadji wasn't entirely sure.

"It is a good matter to consider," Wufei said surprisingly gently. "I have often thought I would do better to evaluate more my own preconceptions. Our beliefs are different, but if you wish to have a philosophical discussion, I would be more than willing to entertain it. You have a worthy perspective, and you are logical and reasonable." He snorted. "Among those who normally darken my days, both are somewhat rare."

That won him a huff of laughter from Hadji and a brighter smile from Dr Quest. Wufei stood up. "I believe I have enough information to draw my own conclusions about what has occurred between you and Winner. I will leave you to rest now."

Before he reached the door, however, he bowed his head once in Hadji's direction.

"Thank you," he said softly. "The harm to you was great, and I understand that. But selfishly, thank you for it anyway. You delivered Quatre to us. We are in your debt."

He left without another word and Benton and Hadji exchanged glances.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Dr Quest asked. Hadji shook his head.

"No. I shall meditate on it before I approach it again."

"Very well." Benton went back to his abandoned cup and refilled it.

They drank their tea in comfortable quiet for a bit, Dr Quest eventually snagging one of the cookies and dunking it directly into the cup of milk he'd brought for his tea, earning a conspiratorial grin from his adopted son; if Jonny had done such a thing, he might have been scolded, but Dr Quest was not above a bit of indulgence of his own now and again.

"Hadji, I did want to talk to you specifically," Benton said eventually, with the air of finally getting to the heart of the matter. "But I do not want to trouble you after you have already been upset, so we can postpone if you would like."

"I surmised as much. Do not fear. I am much more eased in my mind and would welcome another topic for consideration. Please, Dr Quest, I am all attention."

Dr Quest smiled at the polite and old-fashioned air of his adopted son and set down his mostly-empty cup of tea. Leaning forward, he put his thoughts in order. "Hadji, I cannot tell you how proud I am of you for what you were willing to do to rescue a friend. And I will not admonish you for the risk I know you took, in spite of its dangerous consequences to yourself."

Hadji nodded but didn't say anything. He knew Dr Quest well enough to know when to let the man wind up in to a lecture without interruption.

"But there was something you said as you were coming around the first time that I wanted to ask you about."

Hadji tilted his head to one side and considered. He had the vaguest of vague memories of the first few times he had woken from the astral, confused and exhausted, before at last natural sleep had claimed him and he'd felt much more himself afterwards. There was an almost feverish recollection of Jonny and Dr Quest bending over him at one point, trying to soothe him. He wondered what he might have said.

"You were mumbling to yourself," Dr Quest answered his unvoiced question. "But at one point you looked straight at Jonny and said, 'I'm still your brother, aren't I?' Do you remember that?"

"No," Hadji shook his head. "No, I do not recall it at all."

"Jonny was very worried. He said a number of things before you again closed your eyes, but I don't know if you really heard any of them. I did, however." Benton scooted his chair a bit closer and looked Hadji square in the eye. "Hadji, it's important to me to know how you feel about your place in our family."

"Oh no," he sighed. "Not you, too. Dr Quest, I assure you, I do not have doubts as to your feelings, or Jonny's, and I am not in the least insecure about my place. Please do believe me."

"I do believe you," Dr Quest said kindly, "but I think you may yet underestimate us and yourself."

"What do you mean?"

"Jonny mentioned something about how you refer to me as 'Dr Quest' instead of 'dad' as he does when I asked him to explain himself," he answered. "He admitted that he was very worried it meant you did not feel comfortable with me in the role of your father."

"And I told him myself that he was mistaken," Hadji said quickly.

"I believe you," Dr Quest said again. "I know you too well, Hadji. You would never consciously show any amount of disrespect to me, nor to yourself, nor would you allow Jonny to be concerned over nothing. But that does not mean that he is not correct in noticing that pattern."

Hadji made to speak but Benton held up a hand for silence.

"Do not think I have not caught the times you refer to 'your family' instead of 'our,' Hadji. It is in my nature, and yours too, to notice details. But I have never been affronted by it and am not now, so please do not feel that you must apologize. It is I who should apologize to you."

"But, what for?" He was truly surprised.

"Hadji, when we adopted you from Calcutta, I told you that you would be a son to me, not a servant. And from that moment, you have never looked upon yourself as less than Jonny. However, you did maintain a certain distance, one I believe you saw as properly respectful given your circumstances. You sought my approval right along with Jonny as might any boy, but you never asked for my affection. You have never shown fear that I might someday send you away, but you have also hesitated to draw yourself closer."

"Dr, Quest, I assure you –"

"I realized some time ago that this was an unconscious behavior on your part," he interrupted. "And observation quickly told me that it was not one you employed due to any feelings of inadequacy or insecurity. So I have allowed it to remain unchallenged. I did not believe it was causing you undo distress to separate yourself as you did. But this experience has shown me that it may well have upset others around us, others who did not see why you made the choices you did."

"I never intended to imply in any way that I do not feel welcome with you," Hadji said defensively, wishing to lay to rest any concerns. But Benton shook his head.

"And you did not. I believe even you may not realize the reason for these careful constructs. Do you recognize them?"

"Yes, I do," Hadji answered slowly. "Jonny has pointed out to me rather recently the verbal patterns you mention. I had not considered it worth examining, however, as they were not based in, as you say, feelings of insecurity."

"If you do choose to examine them, I would like you to consider my hypothesis, then," Dr Quest said warmly. "Because I believe you separate yourself, not out of fear or shame or even uncertainty. I believe you do it because you love us all that much."

"At first glance and from an entirely objective perspective," Hadji raised an eyebrow, "that would make little sense."

"Which is of course why it is only a hypothesis, but it is also the only one that fits all of the facts," Benton smiled broadly. "Faced with the situation of a boy who suffered so terribly, who found himself suddenly gifted with everything he could ever want – a family to love him and the opportunity to pursue his various mental and intellectual passions, a boy who was obviously happy – I had to construct an explanation rooted in similar positive things."

"And what did you conclude?" Hadji felt his throat inexplicably tighten.

"That you chose to emulate not my biological son, but my best friend in showing your appreciation and respect for what I had given you. The relationship between a father and son can be fraught with struggles, as you have witnessed firsthand, and you also know from observation that multiple children can be very trying to parents. So by addressing me as Race does, without using my first name when you were admittedly a little young to do so, you relieved the tension on that dynamic. You were offering to be more than a son to me, more than one more child in the family to require I extend my energies on your behalf. You were willing to shoulder the burdens of a partner, an assistant, and let Jonny be the only son with whom I need concern myself."

He reached out and took Hadji's hand, suddenly cold, in his warmer and larger one.

"You learned long before I ever met you, Hadji, that fathers can forget to love their sons, to your own detriment. I believe you know by now that I am not one of them, but perhaps those lessons of your childhood are more firmly rooted than either of us realized. Whatever place you wish in our family is yours. You are a fine young man, brave and honest and wise, and I could not be prouder of you. But I wish you always to know that you are my son first and a friend later and that is the most I could ever ask of you."

"I…" he tried, but Hadji could not find the words. He compulsively gripped the hand that seemed to be anchoring him.

"Jonny loves you," Benton said. "And so do I. Race regards you just as he does Jonny, like sons to him. You do not need to be another Race, steady and reliable and entirely independent, even for my sake. I do not need you to spare me the work of another son. I would never ask it of you, and you have given it all these years out of your own kindness."

"I…there is much that feels true in your words," Hadji finally managed around a dry tightness in his throat. "I remember seeing women with many children lamenting that she had so many, that she could not possibly feed or care for them all, and it is true I have never wished to burden you. I never connected those two facts, however."

"I thought as much. Do not trouble yourself," Dr Quest squeezed his hand again. "I am not upset with you in any way. I never have been, not for this. But given the recent events, and Jonny with this like Bandit with a bone, I thought I would speak to you at last and apologize."

"Yes, you said that, but I don't understand why you feel you must." Hadji looked closely into Dr Quest's face, confused. "I cannot see where you might owe me any sort of apology."

"Because I am going to tell you something I have told you before, but perhaps I ought to have said more often. I've realized that every day was not enough to tell Jonny's mother how much I loved her. Perhaps I did not truly learn that lesson until now. So I am sorry, Hadji, for not saying this more when you have earned it every hour you have been with us: You are my son, and I love you as such, just as you are. You do not have to be anything but what you are for me or anyone. Be yourself. You are no different in my eyes than Jonny, and you can ask anytime if you ever need me to tell you so."

Hadji felt a tear track down his face and he swallowed hard against the unexpected pressure in his chest. It wasn't anything he didn't know, hadn't told himself many, many times. But he so rarely heard it, just for him, and it brought feelings that were childlike in their simple intensity storming into his heart.

Dr Quest dropped his hand and moved to sit on the bed, taking his son in his arms. He didn't care in that moment that Hadji Singh Quest was almost a grown man himself. No matter how old, sometimes a person just needs their father. And as a few more tears soaked into his shirt and Hadji settled into the hug, he knew he had been correct.

"You're a remarkable, amazing young man," he said softly. "You love us all so much you would give up your own place with us to make our lives easier. You would hold yourself outside our family to protect us. But you forgot one thing, Hadji."

"What's that?" he said, not yet raising his head from the warmth of the arms that held him.

"That you can never give up your place. It is yours for life no matter what you do with it. And also…" here he waited until Hadji was looking him in the eye, "we love you enough to keep you with us, no matter what."

Hadji nodded shakily and straightened. He avoided the heat of his face by fiddling with his now-mussed turban while Dr Quest discretely acquired a tissue and handed it over, needing one for himself as well.

"Thank you," Hadji said. A lesser person would have said it looking down, but Hadji met Benton's eyes unflinchingly. "I don't say it enough either. Thank you for giving me a family. Thank you for _being_ my family. Thank you for my life you saved that day and every day since."

"We're even," Benton said. "You saved my life the first day I met you, and you have saved all our lives many times." He laughed suddenly. "If we were a people who believed in life-debts we would all be horribly entangled such I don't think even all five of us together could keep track of it! But you have given us so much more than that. I've never been less than proud to call you my son."

"And I," Hadji said, his voice steady even as the words trembled a bit, "have always been proud to consider myself your son." He let out a breath and said softly, "Father."

Benton's smile could have lit the whole colony.


	22. Respite

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Someone asked if we were nearing the end of this story. I think the chapter after this will be the answer. Until then, thank you everyone who has read and supported throughout the adventure so far!
> 
> Enjoy!

A good twelve hours after they had returned to L2, having slept a great deal, the five Quests felt ready to face the world again. They had mostly kept to the two rooms they'd claimed earlier, everybody cramming in one while Hadji "needed quiet" until he had politely but firmly told them to stop avoiding him. But there were delicious smells now wafting from the rest of the apartment and it was mid-afternoon two days after they had left Earth, and a long two days it had been. Their circadian rhythms had been completely thrown off, with the first assault against Rage happening deep in the middle of what should have been "night" and the rescue of all but Quatre the following morning. And preparing for the attack that liberated Quatre from ZERO had been without much sleep or food for anybody.

So the scent of garlic and butter and spiced meats would have drawn anybody near the moment it was noticed.

Race led the way from the small hallway that linked their two rooms to a sort of common entryway. It had contained several chairs and a plain table and more doors that led elsewhere, through one of which was another hallway to three bedrooms they knew the pilots were using. But one of the other doors stood open and unlocked for the first time and Race grinned as he entered.

Where the bedrooms were simple though large and comfortable, and the entryway common area had been impersonal almost to the point of sterile, this room was reminiscent of the warm and bright dining room at Rock Island. Proximity to the hangar meant that this room was on the edge of the colony and looked out on outer space, the moon bright in view. The roundish oval table in the center was layered in food, all obviously procured from Angelo's, and likely at least one of everything on the menu included in the spread. Lanterns hung, winking brightly and wrapping the whole room in a soft golden glow.

But what made Race smile the most was the tableau he found there.

Wufei was leaning against the window, a small smile playing on his face as he watched Duo trying in more and more creative ways to steal the nearest platter of baklava. Heero, beside him, kept thwarting him not by simply interfering, but by maneuvering other things on the table into his way, including a large bowl of whipped butter that bore evidence of an elbow-print. Across from them, Trowa was laughing, his face flushed and bright. One of his hands was tangled in Quatre's, who was also laughing, and, if not for the small bandage on his temple and the much larger one at the base of his skull, would have looked completely well.

As the Quests entered, Quatre sprang to his feet, moving towards them with arms outstretched.

"You're here! I'm so glad you're all safe!" and there was open relief in his eyes. "I'm so sorry I haven't come to thank you for your help yet in rescuing me."

"Even you gotta sleep, Cat," Duo winked, trying to use the distraction of the Quests to snatch the desserts and winding up with a pea in his ear for his trouble from a smirking Heero.

"It's good to see you up again, Quatre," Benton stepped forward, grasping the boy's hand and closing his other over both. "You gave us a good scare."

"I owe you all so much," he said, looking at each in turn. "The chances you took to rescue me, the danger you were in. I can't repay it."

"And you won't!" Race clapped him on the back affectionately. "We're friends. That's enough."

"We're just glad everything worked out," Jessie added. Quatre turned from Dr Quest and, after just a moment of piercing assessment, gave her a hug. Jessie was startled for a moment, then beamed and returned it. She released him just in time for Jonny to drape an arm around his shoulders.

"It's not every day we get to hang with the famous Quatre Raberba Winner, you know," he winked. "Can't let anything happen to you or we'd lose our bragging rights!"

Quatre looked up through his grin at the last member of the family and he stilled, reflecting the solemnity in Hadji's eyes. He moved away from the others and offered his hand.

"Thank you, Hadji. Thank you for saving everyone from me when I couldn't protect them myself."

"What I did to you," Hadji replied softly, sadly, "was the worst use to which my knowledge has ever been put. I severed you from yourself and from those you love against your will. I realize now, after what I have been told, that I cut your empathic bonds to the people around you. It could have been permanent."

"It was a slight possibility," Quatre said seriously, meeting the dark brown eyes with his steady blue ones, "but those bonds are fixed now. And I asked you to do it, my friend. It was a risk worth the cost. Lives are always worth the cost to one person, or even five of us."

"Still, I feel I must apologize. I may have won your life, but I could well have broken your mind and soul."

Now Quatre smiled broadly and reached his outstretched hand until it rested on Hadji's chest. At the point of contact, Hadji felt warmth bloom in his heart.

"Even you, for all your skill, could never have done that. My mind and soul were always safe because they were protected not only by you, but by my friends. The journey to regain myself might have been difficult, but I always knew I would find my way back eventually with everyone to guide me. You ensured I would live to make the attempt. Please do not torture yourself. I owe you my life."

The small bubble of warmth under Quatre's hand seemed to expand and Hadji's eyes widened. He met the secretive smile with an expression of astonishment. Quatre had never been able to project to Hadji outside of their shared meditation; that he was doing so now meant something profound had changed his empathic abilities. Changed them profoundly, in fact.

But before he could ask, Trowa stepped into his field of view and smiled a little shyly.

"We all owe you more than we can repay. More than we can explain. Thank you, all of you, for what you have given us." He did not move, but his eyes were warm and his heart was clear in them. Even Duo had ceased his antics and was looking up with a smile.

The moment was broken by a joyful yip.

"Bandit!" Jonny called as the dog suddenly sprinted from where he'd been content at his side.

"Chibi, behave," Heero sad severely. The dog skidded to a halt next to Heero's chair and looked up at him so beseechingly everyone had to laugh. Heero said something in Japanese and the pup immediately settled down in a sprawl across his feet.

"You have _got_ to show me how you did that," Jonny laughed, moving into the room and gravitating towards a seat next to Heero.

"Yes, everyone, come and eat. There's a lot to discuss," and a slight shadow fell across Quatre's face as he gestured towards the table, "but first we need to restore our strength and energy."

"Where are you going?" Race asked the blond, who had continued past the Quests towards the door.

"I have another group of friends to greet first," he said. "Please start without me. I'll only be a few minutes." He met Trowa's eyes and smiled confidently.

"Let him go," he heard Trowa say as he stepped out into the entryway and began to shut the door behind him. "He really is all right. But this is something he would rather do without an audience."

Quatre strode from the apartment briskly, moving down the hallways of the little-known part of this L2 colony as familiarly as though he had been born here. This particular apartment was one he had secured the use of for a mission some time ago, and it had proven useful anytime he ex-Gundam pilots had needed a base near L2. It wasn't his personal townhome in the cluster, but he had arranged to have at least comfy beds and dining room furnishings supplied so they could feel like they were in better than the barracks the apartment otherwise resembled. A few scant levels down and one short corridor over and Quatre emerged into the brightly-lit Sweepers hangar.

His appearance, of course, caused a shout to go up.

"Master Quatre!" "Look, Master Quatre has come!" "Master! You're awake!"

A grin tugging at his lips, Quatre walked confidently into the center of the hangar, the Maganacs practically tossing their tools aside (or pillows in the case of those who had been napping) and crowded around him. But no one impeded him and they left him a comfortable margin as he met Rashid in the middle of the chaos.

"Master Quatre," Rashid said, his deep voice rumbling with relief, "it's good to see you safe." He made a full bow to Quatre, who returned it gracefully. "Heero told us you had woken to yourself, but asked us not to disturb you until you had rested."

"Yes, and thank you for that, though you could have visited me. I didn't want you to worry," he said. "I'm all right now, thanks to all of you."

"Master Quatre, what's that on your neck?" Abdul pointed at the conspicuous bandage.

"It's nothing serious," he smiled at the young man, "just a lasting reminder of our opponent."

"Speaking of which," Rashid interrupted the grumbling that was sure to arise, "we have heard little from Preventers. Can you tell us if the terrorists who did this have been brought to justice? We have a grievance to repay, after all."

"Well, the Quests are joining us for dinner, and after that we'll have to hold a briefing to go through not only everything that happened, but what's changed since we left the satellite. I can't say anything until I'm officially supposed to know," he smiled a little slyly, "but I don't think we're done with them yet."

He turned to face the men who had gathered around and looked at each in turn. "You risked your lives and your safety to ensure my rescue. And I'm afraid things will not be easier if we face these people again. It may be more dangerous than ever."

"If you are fighting, Master," one of the others called Assad said, "then we will go with you."

"If there is a threat to those we hold dear, and to our Master," added his brother named Jamal, "we belong at your side to combat it."

Quatre sighed resignedly and nodded. He looked back to Rashid.

"The men are all in agreement, Master. We will follow you into this battle, and we will do it whether you order us or not. But we will be stronger if you will lead us properly." He held out his hands, the goggles cradled as carefully as if they were sacred.

"Rashid, I'm not sure..."

"Master Quatre," he interrupted, "this is our fight now as well. The Maganacs will not sit by and allow this madman to threaten the people of Earth or the colonies. And even if that were not the case, we will not forgive what he has done to you. We ask you to lead us against him."

Quatre swallowed once, then nodded firmly and accepted the goggles. He tightened his hands over them, comforted in their familiar weight and feel, and all the memories of battles he had won, including the one wherein he had earned them. He did not don them, as they were only for the battlefield and not dinner, but he tucked them into the pocket that always seemed empty otherwise.

"Thank you," he said softly, and the Maganacs knew he was thanking them as much for their loyalty as he was the return of his post of honor, and also their willingness to fight to protect the innocent.

"Go and rejoin your friends," Rashid put a fatherly hand on his shoulder. "When you are prepared to share your plans with us, we will be ready."

"Then I will be back in a few hours," Quatre straightened his spine and squared his shoulders. He looked for a moment like the commander they trusted in battle and not the boy they had protected. The crowd parted for him, but he stopped at the door that led from the hangar and turned back.

"Master?" Rashid asked.

"Come with me, Rashid. There isn't room for all of you in there or I'd invite everyone. We'll have to celebrate together when we have time – I'll see to it. But this is not just strategy. This is family." His pale cheeks flushed ever so slightly but his gaze never so much as twitched away from the intensity of the large man's eyes. "You belong with us, Rashid."

The men traded wide grins and Rashid stepped quickly to his side.

"It would be my honor, Master Quatre." He draped an arm around the young man's shoulders fondly, grateful beyond the telling of it for the spring in his step and the light in his eyes. If the terrorists had taken either of those from his young Master, he would have _obliterated_ them.

"Besides," Quatre laughed as he waved at the rest of the Maganacs and resumed his journey back upstairs, "who knows what sort of trouble they'll get into and I might need you to help me get them out of it!"

 

-==OOO==-

Dinner did turn out to be a rather noisy affair.

Duo appeared to have made it his mission to compensate for the seriousness and stress of the last few days with as many antics as he could get away with, and perhaps unsurprisingly, Jonny followed suit. Less expected was Race and Quatre and even Trowa egging the mischievous pair to greater and greater lengths, thoroughly testing the patience of the more reserved Wufei and Heero. Benton just allowed himself to laugh, Jessie began swapping bets with Hadji about who would get punched first, and Rashid smiled at the fact that his young Master along with the other four so often under his watchful eyes were again filled with exuberance and could relax their guard even for this short, golden moment.

Somewhere in the middle of polishing off dessert, Duo turned to Hadji with an expression of impish amusement.

"So, Tubs, you sure you're okay?" Duo asked.

Ten faces looked at him in astonishment. Hadji found his voice first.

"Excuse me. Did you just refer to me as _Tubs_?"

"Well, you wear a turban. And I thought Cat might get mad at me if I called you Swami or something. So, Tubs it is," Duo shrugged.

"No. Absolutely not," came the surprisingly vehement defense by Wufei. "You mangle my name more than enough as it is. You will not refer to an ally to whom we owe a _very large debt_ by something so dishonorable."

"Not to mention stupid," Trowa added, but there was a dark light of laughter in his eyes.

"Well what else is there?" Duo was exasperated. "He's just too squeaky clean for anything else!"

"One of his best qualities," Race said smugly.

"Anyway, that truly hopeless diversion aside," Quatre succeeded in not giggling at the still-shocked, strangled expressions of Jonny and Jessie, "we've got a few things to go over."

The shift in the room chilled it a little, but there was a warmth in Quatre's seriousness that made it feel somewhat less dire.

For the sake of everyone, Wufei quickly outlined everything that had happened since they had originally separated after landing the New Jersey on their first visit to the mining satellite. When he came to the end of his briefing, Jessie added the details about how she and Jonny and Hadji had chosen to enter the installation after the comms had been shorted by Quatre in the ZERO System, brushing relatively quickly over their few small encounters. Rashid put in a bit about the battle fought by the Maganacs in the interim before and during their escape. Quatre supplied his insights about Rage himself as well as what he recalled about the specific armaments that had been at his fingertips to ensure the mass extermination of so many people. The details of Quatre and Hadji and their respective recoveries from their psychic experiences were glossed over, as in both cases what they might have shared was really meant to be kept with those to whom they were closest.

Everyone now with the same amount of information, Wufei spoke again.

"I received confirmation from Une that the Preventers unit she sent to the mining installation did recover most of the weaponry and missiles, as well as several more terrorists who did not meet their fates at our hands. The satellite will be secured over the next few days, and the weapons confiscated or, in the case of raw materials, returned to their owners, including WEI," he nodded towards Quatre.

"But...?" Jessie asked before she could stop herself. Wufei looked at her and nodded with satisfaction.

"But the Preventers did not apprehend Ezekiel Rage. Nor could they recover ZERO, for that matter, but its console was in bad shape when we left, so it likely is beyond restoration," he shrugged.

"Rage is still out there?" Duo curled his lip. "I owe that guy something for what he did to Cat."

"You'll get your chance," Wufei said. "Finding him is my new mission. I already have a possible lead on his location."

"Count me in then, Oh Captain My Captain!" the braided young man grinned. Wufei rolled his eyes but made no comment – he supposed that was better than usual coming from Maxwell.

"So what happens now?" Jonny wanted to know.

"You go home." Heero, who had not spoken much at all, looked up with absolute decisiveness in his face. "This is our job."

"He's right," Quatre said gently. "ZERO is gone, and now it's just a standard chase-after-a-terrorist sort of mission. We can't justify involving you anymore, not as civilians."

"But what if you..." Race trailed off. He'd forgotten for a moment who he was talking to; asking what they would do if they needed help was beneath them. "What if you need to pick our brains again?" he quickly amended.

"We know how to find you," Wufei actually did not frown at the man. "If for some reason we find ourselves out of our depths and require the help of _untrained civilians_ , we will certainly call on you."

"It isn't that we don't appreciate the help," Trowa said before the Quests could react to that derisive tone behind the "untrained civilians" bit. "But this is really something we can do on our own. With ZERO out the way, Rage really isn't much of a threat anymore. We just have to find him."

"And finding rats in dark holes is something we do pretty well," Duo flashed that slightly creepy grin again.

"There is something I don't like about this, though..." Quatre furrowed his brow and stared at the plate in front of him for a moment. "I'm pretty sure Rage wasn't working alone."

"He wasn't."

Everyone looked at Heero in surprise, who shrugged nonchalantly.

"Quatre, I told you several days ago I had something I wanted to show you the next time you were on Earth."

"You mean way back before we'd even met the Quests?" he asked.

"Yes. I believe it's connected."

"And that's all you'll say," Wufei made a cutting motion with his hand. "From this point on, this is a Preventers operation, and since we don't need any outsiders, we're not going to involve them or share confidential mission details with them."

"Yeah, but..." Race started again.

"It's all right," came Hadji's voice, as he looked up from where he had also been considering something quietly and turned to his family. "They're right, you know. We aren't technically Preventers. We have become familiar, but they still must respect certain boundaries. And I'm sure they will work much faster if freed to do things in their own way."

He met Quatre's eyes and smiled. "But that doesn't mean you are permitted to forget about us entirely. When this is over, I for one would like to visit with you again."

"Count on it, Tubs!"

While Duo was avoiding being smacked by Jessie, Dr Quest caught Wufei's attention.

"So, as Jonny said, what happens now?"

"You should go home unless you've got other business in space. We're basically done with you for anything official," the Chinese agent shrugged. "You've signed all the papers that will legally bind you to secrecy, and to be honest I don't think it matters anyway. If you reveal what you have learned in these last few days about us or the mission, it will be a question of who is faster – Une to arrest you or one of us to kill you. I think it depends on how far along we are chasing Rage."

The matter-of-fact way in which he said it surprised no one, but there was a certain wryness of tone that hadn't been there the first time any of the ex-Gundams had threatened the Quests. And it was a moot point. The Quests would never betray them.

"The compound! Are those guys that exploded still, you know, there at our house?" Jonny suddenly remembered.

"Oh, of course not. We arranged for Preventers to come in and clean up as soon as we'd left," Quatre assured him. "Nothing icky waiting for you at home, I'm sure."

"We could send you with some security if you're worried, though," Trowa put in thoughtfully.

"The Maganacs would be glad to ensure the safety of those who helped rescue Master Quatre," Rashid spoke up.

"The risk to us is minimal at this point, I think," Race considered. "Rage got what he wanted, and he lost it again. I'm sure you'll take him down before we even have to worry about looking over our shoulders." He winked.

"So...are you back to the status quo, then?" Jessie asked. "Quietly saving the world without anybody knowing about it?"

"Pretty much, yeah," Duo lifted one shoulder and smirked. "It's the endless waltz thing."

"Peace, rebellion, and war, forever repeating," Quatre answered the confusion of those unfamiliar with the phrase. "Like a waltz in three. It's a pattern of history we're trying to break if we can."

"Well, if the balance of peace and war is a waltz," Benton smiled sincerely, his eyes bright, "then I for one am glad the five of you are the people conducting it for us in these difficult times."

"Not all of us," Duo sniffed. "Only Cat and Trowa have any real gift for music."

"Even better then," Jonny said, looking straight at Quatre. The blond Arab colored slightly under the trust and certainty in the blue eyes that met his, and Trowa squeezed his hand. Their bond told him what his lover thought about that: _There's no one better than you with the gentle rhythm of your heart to keep us all on the right beat._

Quatre returned the squeeze with a message of his own: _I could never do it alone. I'm glad I have you, all of you, with me._


	23. Reentry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I said you'd have an answer as to whether or not this would continue. Now you do!
> 
> Enjoy!

Saying goodbye to the five ex-pilots had proved harder than the Quests expected. The Strataquest was a lot quieter than usual, in spite of the long flight back to Earth.

"It's weird, isn't it?" Jonny asked after several minutes of silence post-takeoff. "It's like I can't look at things the same way because I see it all differently."

"I think that's called 'growing up,' Jonny," Race teased.

"Thanks, dad," Jessie rolled her eyes in exasperation. "He's right, though. It sure makes most of our lives look kinda small. I mean, not that we have boring lives."

"I should say not!" Hadji grinned.

"But there is an order of magnitude that we do not typically reach with our encounters," Dr Quest nodded. "Haunted houses and sunken ships do not carry the weight that averting international genocide does."

"Exactly," Jonny said. "Besides, I'm gonna miss those guys."

"I'd have thought you'd be glad to get a little space from them, Jonny," Race commented. At the surprised expression on Jonny's face, he laughed. "You're a lot of good things kid, but you're also the most competitive person I know. And with the five Gundam pilots in the game, you never stood a chance. I'd think it was a relief to go back to being a big fish in a smaller pond."

But even as he said it, he shot a wry look to Benton who hid his smile. There was only some truth to Race's comment; they both knew he'd said it to provoke thought, not anger.

"Yeah," he replied after a moment, "I guess that was true at first. When we didn't know everything."

"I think what Jonny is trying to say," Hadji winked at the relieved grin his adopted brother sent him; Hadji always knew when Jonny had come up short on explaining his feelings, "is that his normally competitive nature has given way to his wiser self. To use your analogy, while there is pleasure in being a large fish in a small pond, it is much more gratifying to be yourself in a pond of others who support you and see value in you regardless of your size."

"Once we won their respect," Jessie picked up the thought, "it didn't matter that we couldn't be just like them. We found a place that fit. And they trusted us, maybe more than they trust most people. I don't think we're going to forget that anytime soon."

"Well, and Quatre has promised to come to visit us after they wrap up their investigation, and I expect Trowa and possibly even Duo will accompany him," Dr Quest added.

"And if we ever _really_ wanted to see them again," Race's eyes twinkled, "we could always tell the media what we know about them. Then I'm sure we wouldn't have to wait too long before one or all of them showed up on our doorstep."

"To shoot us!" Jonny exclaimed, laughing. "Unless it was Quatre. He'd probably say something diplomatic and polite and before we knew it we'd have signed over everything we own!"

"No," Hadji shook his head. "While I do not believe he would shoot us, I instead expect we would never see him at all. Quatre would arrange matters so that whatever we said could not be believed and anyone who would listen would be utterly drowned out by a well-managed press corp at his beck and call."

"I think Trowa and Wufei would try to get us arrested rather than just shoot us," Jessie put in thoughtfully. "Heero and Duo, though. We'd be in real trouble."

"You kids really did get to know them, didn't you?" Race asked.

"Some more than others," Jonny shrugged. "I don't think anybody _really_ knows them. But I think we can tell how they fit together."

"You and Wufei had quite a conversation just before we left," Jessie poked Hadji in the arm. "What were you talking about anyway?"

Hadji blushed slightly – in the chaos of departing amidst so many people, he had hoped for his brief interlude to go unnoticed. Not only had all five of the pilots been on-hand to see the Quests off, but so had half of the Maganacs. It had been chaotic and, strangely, very touching. Nobody was particularly demonstrative, but Duo had slung an arm around him and Jessie while making jokes, Rashid had thanked them all profoundly for their help in the investigation, and even the ever-stoic Wufei and Heero had found reason to smile as they said their goodbyes. Even so, the Quests had known that they were still only receiving half the full attention of all five pilots; with Rage yet to track down and his mysterious partner to identify, they were clearly still in "mission mode" even if they did take a break for their allies.

"If it's private, you don't have to tell us," Jonny said, mistaking Hadji's pause for uncertainty.

"No, it's nothing like that," he assured him. "It's more…I'm not quite sure how to tell you."

It had been an odd conversation.

 

> " _Quest," Wufei had spoken so lowly that Hadji was sure he was the only one to have heard. "A word before you leave." It was also not a request._
> 
> _Hadji slipped off to one side of the crowd, following Wufei around a small partition where they would have some privacy. The young Chinese man crossed his arms and looked up at Hadji with an unreadable expression._
> 
> " _What you did to Winner," he began abruptly, "you told me that you knowingly cut a number of 'connections' between his mind and whatever they led to. And that those connections, and indeed his whole self, was concealed beneath a layer of unemotive material?"_
> 
> " _Yes," he answered, nodding slowly._
> 
> " _Is there any possibility that the 'scales' you described, this dampening and cold exterior, could have come, not from ZERO, but from Winner himself?"_
> 
> _Hadji quirked his head in surprise, but took a moment to gather his thoughts before spreading his hands and shrugging. "I suppose anything is possible. What I saw or experienced was that these scales, whatever they were, appeared to surround Quatre's mind, and they were limiting the flow of his essence from the center outwards to, well, everyone to whom he has a bond, I suppose. I cannot say with any certainty that those scales were ZERO because I do not know exactly what I was looking at."_
> 
> _Wufei seemed to consider this, closing his eyes briefly before uncrossing his arms and stepping closer to Hadji, his face intent._
> 
> " _And when you cut those connections, did you intend to change the shield of scales that was in place?"_
> 
> " _No, but the longer I worked to isolate his mind, the more strongly I could sense his presence from behind them. They seemed to break apart with prolonged contact. So perhaps my actions weakened them?" Now he looked inquisitively at his questioner. "Agent Chang, has something happened?"_
> 
> " _Winner has reported some changes in his empathy," Wufei said in answer, "and I am attempting to understand what might have caused them. Nothing to be concerned about, however, or I am certain he would have told you himself."_
> 
> " _I see." Hadji felt a tightness in his chest as he wondered what harm his actions might have done his friend. But Wufei sighed and looked a little amused and exasperated._
> 
> " _You are not to blame, and the changes Winner has mentioned do not seem to be dangerous. Take care with your feelings of guilt or he will delay your departure to ensure you are all right." And without another word he rejoined the others just in time to intercept Duo's attempt to sneak something into Jonny's pocket._

 

"And you don't know what it means?" Jonny asked.

"No. Nor do I feel I should speculate with so little context. When we next see Quatre, however, you may be assured I will ask," Hadji resolved.

"I must say," Benton smiled, "I feel easier in my mind knowing that you three have befriended them. Not just Quatre, but all of them, it appears, need some support in their lives. That may be the one silver lining to come out of this whole awful experience – that five good young men have found a few more allies who are willing to trust and help them without asking for anything in return."

"And we have found five allies of our own who can pretty much handle anything we get ourselves into," Jessie grinned. "So the next time we're in real trouble, not only do we have the CEO of WEI on speed-dial, but five guys who can pretty much kick the pants off whoever is giving us a hard time."

"Yeah! I so can't wait until the next time we –" Jonny began. But his eager smirk died when all the lights on the interior of the shuttle did.

"Race, what's happening?" Dr Quest asked, voice still calm.

"I'm not sure," Race answered, trying to get some sort of control. "It's like she just shut down. No warnings or anything."

"Should we don the emergency spacesuits?" Hadji asked pragmatically.

"No, she's responding now and the environmental systems seem okay," Race said, relieved, as the controls lit up once more. But the interior lights stayed dark. "I'll try to signal for help. I'm not sure what's wrong, but we might not want to attempt reentry with the Strataquest until we get her looked at."

"That won't be necessary."

As the cool voice filtered through the speakers, the shuttle abruptly lurched forward.

"It's not me!" Race continued working on the console. "Somebody's flying us remotely!"

"That is correct, Race Bannon. Sit back and relax, all of you. I have no intention of bringing you to harm yet, but your ship is under my control and you will put yourselves at risk should you defy me."

"Who is hijacking us? And why?" Jessie whispered fiercely to the boys, low enough not to be picked up by the intercom.

"I don't know," Jonny furrowed his brow, "but that voice seems familiar."

"Please, Doctor Quest," the voice dripped with false sincerity, "I would hate to have to jettison a portion of your oxygen supply to ensure your cooperation. But if you continue to attempt to overwrite my commands, I will do so without hesitation. This is your last warning. You will not interfere with the shuttle in any way."

"All right," Benton said loudly, lifting his hands from the control panel he's been attempting to hack. "It seems we have little choice."

"That is correct. I knew you could be reasonable."

"Where are you taking us?" Race wanted to know.

"All will be revealed to you in time. Until then, sit back, relax, and enjoy your flight."

The Quests exchanged uneasy glances. In fact, they felt pretty sure they would do no such thing.

 

-==OOO==-

 

It was more than an hour before the Strataquest finally approached and docked with what could only be a colony under construction, but they didn't know if they were closer to L4 or L5 anymore. With the onboard computers basically ignoring them, they could not determine precisely which colony it was; still, it had to be a newly-funded project as there were still large parts of the colony partially incomplete, beams and pylons stretching into space like skeletal fingers. The shuttle flew directly into the colony, docking inside a small hangar bay at the edge of the mostly completed section.

"Please disembark," came the same cold voice, "and do not attempt any heroics."

"It's all right," Race said in a calm undertone. "We'll get our chance. We don't know what we're up against yet, so let's keep our heads."

As he turned to lead the way out of the Strataquest, Jonny, Jessie, and Hadji all exchanged a certain look. It was as clear as if they had shouted in perfect unison: _Yeah, we'll play along for now, but there is nothing they can do to stop us from fighting back the first chance we get because we are not going to give up and back down._

The door of the shuttle opened with a hiss before Race even touched the controls, and he was met with several guns pointed at him. He raised his hands over his head and walked out onto the docking platform. Jonny fell into place behind him, Jessie next, and Hadji right in front of Benton with Bandit trailing at Jonny's heels. They all walked with their arms up in the universal gesture for surrender, until Jonny stopped abruptly as he got a good luck at one of the gunmen.

"Lorenzo!" he exclaimed. "Then that means…"

A screen mounted on the wall ahead of them flickered to life and the face of someone they knew all too well filled the view, head listing to one side in its permanent artificial cradle.

"Yes, of course, my boy. I'm saddened you failed to recognize me sooner. I should think I would have left a stronger impression on you through our past encounters."

"Jeremiah Surd," Dr Quest said his name like an accusation, "what do you want this time?"

"Would it surprise you that my answer is 'nothing,' in fact? For I already have all I desired, and now I am free to indulge myself in a rather petty but satisfying celebration of revenge."

"What does that mean?" Jonny couldn't stop himself from asking. Though only Surd's eyes moved, Jonny felt sure the man would have grinned widely at him were he capable. Instead, the tetraplegic Surd simply stared at him expressionlessly, which was altogether more creepy.

"That I have you to thank for handing me the keys to the kingdom, as it were," he responded easily with his artificial and yet chillingly suave voice. "Lorenzo, bring them in."

Gun-nozzles waved them forward and they moved away from the Strataquest and deeper into the incomplete colony, following the maintenance and construction corridors inside the very walls. Several twists and turns in, they were herded roughly into what could only be a conference room of some kind, Surd's face large on the screen. There were chairs, but by unspoken accord no one sat, the five standing shoulder-to-shoulder against their enemy. Surd began without preamble.

"Recently you engaged yourselves with a certain…loose cannon, shall we say? A man of particular _rage_? And through the course of that encounter, a computer program was perfected after exposure to a particularly useful mind. Was it one of you?" Surd asked conversationally. But without waiting for an answer he continued on with, "No, of course not. Even you, Dr Quest, do not have the delightfully efficient brainwaves and tactical knowledge to have shown ZERO how to rebuild itself so perfectly. No matter. The day was saved, the villain vanquished, and you set off to return home resting on the laurels of your good work."

The Quests exchanged uneasy glances.

"But all the while, the real aim of things remained obscured to you. You did not recover the ZERO System after Rage's defeat, did you? And you presumed it was destroyed? How foolish. A computer program, even a complex one, can travel much faster than the speed of an explosion. And by the time one local version was threatened with destruction, I had already acquired it in full."

The screen switched to show a map of outer space, the five colony clusters and the Earth marked brightly against the darkness.

"Rage's plan was simple, too simple. Destroying all of humanity may have its merits, but it is unenlightened at best. Everyone seems to have missed the true value of ZERO, myself aside. Why use such a program to destroy, when you could instead use it to rule as a god?"

Now yellow dots and lines began to spread across the colonies and the Earth.

"For a _superior_ mind, ZERO does more than present options for strategic victory. It can, with the right adjustments, infiltrate any computerized system in the Earth Sphere, from government databases to the internet to the programs that manage the environmental controls on every single colony and satellite. ZERO lifts the human intellect out of the mud of its biological constraints and gives it new life as a virtual construct. Or, in more layman's terms, ZERO can free a mind from its body and give that mind access to anything whose operation includes so much as a single microchip!"

The yellow spread faster across the scene on the monitor.

"Thanks to your help, my ZERO System is now perfectly attuned. At last I have the mobility denied me by you, Race Bannon. And soon enough I shall bring the whole of the Earth Sphere to its knees. Governments will obey me or risk a sudden loss of oxygen in a colony cluster. Corporations will surrender their resources or find their systems irrevocably purged. And any action taken against me will be identified and thwarted before it ever gets beyond the briefing notes logged to an internal mainframe."

"You'll never get away with this!" Race yelled.

"Oh, but I will," Surd's voice was sickly in its warmth. "And as I continue to consolidate my control elsewhere, the time has come to repay your _kindness_ to me, Race Bannon. I thought long and hard about what I might do to you, but recent events have made it abundantly clear. There is but one torture that will suit. And _you_ shall be first, though none of you shall escape me. Lorenzo!"

Race was already moving to intercept, but a sharp cry brought him up short. Jessie had been yanked from behind and was held between two of Surd's men, a third with his rifle resting against her temple. Jonny and Hadji both tensed but Race waved them off. It just wasn't worth the risk.

"Take them," Surd commented.

Lorenzo hit Race in the head with the butt of his gun, and two more large men hauled him along as he stumbled from the blow. The pair with Jessie followed, but the rest of the guards made no move to force Benton, Jonny, and Hadji after the Bannons. Jonny, who had picked up Bandit during their long walk, set him quickly on the ground and the little dog, familiar with this sort of problem, followed Race; he would stick to him no matter what and possibly even lead Race to Jonny later. It was a good precaution in cases where the five of them were separated.

And it appeared that the remaining guards had no intention of keeping the family together. Instead, they forced the three Quests out a separate door and through a maze of corridors and half-completed structures until they passed into a huge open construction space, where they were quickly locked in a shipping container.

As the doors slammed shut and a chain was audibly laced across the opening, Jonny couldn't help but throw his shoulder against the sharp metal, hoping for some amount of give. But they might as well have been sealed in a seamless cube.

"What do you think they're going to do to Jessie and Race?" he asked worriedly.

"I don't know, son," Benton shook his head even though no one could see it in the darkness, "but with Surd involved, I'm sure it will be brutal."

"Then we must do all we can to assist them," Hadji put in, kneeling in the corner and expertly feeling around to check their prison for any cracks or vents or anything that might lend them a way out. "It appears that Surd is the mysterious backer our friends are searching for, which suggests their investigations may lead them to us before long."

"Yeah, but the question is what will happen to us in the meantime?" Jonny answered.

"Then let's not sit here waiting to answer that," Dr Quest was decisive. "If there's a way out of this, we'll find it."

 

-==OOO==-

 

Jessie didn't worry too much when the boys were separated from her and her father. Honestly, as far as she was concerned, it made their chances of escape greater. Surd would have to split his focus, and his forces, and that might leave one of the groups with an opening. She was actually more aware that Bandit had fallen behind nosing at something and made a mental note to tell Jonny not to send him off if he was hungry next time – too distractable.

Normally she'd have been concerned about her dad's ability to make use of such an opening after an injury, but she knew him too well – she could tell he wasn't quite as out of it as he was pretending to be. It was an old trick. When the bad guys hit you, if you're okay, let them think you're down. Then they won't be on their guard when you make a move. Her dad was a master at it.

So Jessie kept her eyes open as she was escorted into a room alive with computers and servers and other equipment, eerily similar to the ZERO setup on Rage's base. There was no viewscreen here, but Surd's voice rang out from a wall-mounted speaker next to a camera.

"Since you are so fond of playing god yourself, you may have the seat of honor, Race Bannon."

Now was the moment for her dad to take his chance, but either he was a little more out of it than he'd seemed or Lorenzo had caught on, because Race's twisting blow to free himself was met with two more men catching him and restraining him neatly. They led him over to a metal seat in the center of the room with manacles for the wrists and ankles. He wrestled with them, but four-against-one were not really odds even Race could beat. Within moments he was secured to the chair.

Across the room there was another, similar metal chair, and Jessie found herself forced into it, locked in place as well.

"What's your game, Surd?" her father called jauntily.

"It's no game," replied the disembodied voice. "This is my revenge. While your daughter watches, you will become the newest brain to be shredded by the ZERO System. And when it has ravaged you into either true mindlessness or insanity, I will release you. Perhaps you will kill her in your hallucinations. Perhaps you will kill yourself. Whatever it is, I will enjoy watching every moment of it. And when you have reached your end, I will repeat the process on the others one at a time."

"No." Race's face had paled completely and he threw himself against the restraints on the chair. His, unlike Jessie's, which were standard manacles, appeared to have a lock keyed into the computer itself, with nothing to manipulate on the outside to force them open. And brute strength was not enough.

"Goodbye, Race Bannon!" Surd called triumphantly.

"Dad!" Jessie shouted as a helmet descended from the ceiling and dropped over his head. "Dad, can you hear me?"

"Jess…nnnnhhhhhggggghhhhhhhhh…" his voice gave way to a breathy, guttural exclamation similar to being kicked in the stomach.

"Dad!" Jessie realized they were alone in the room – Surd's goons had left – and she rallied to yell at the only person who could hear her. "Surd, you're going to pay for this!"

"Oh, I think not, Jessie Bannon. But I would certainly pay to enjoy this! Now keep quiet. I am going to record this so that I can relish it over and over again. Perhaps I shall even use it to demonstrate to anyone foolish enough to cross me what the price is for insubordination!"

Jessie had a ready retort but it died on her lips as her father stopped his huffing sound and seemed to snap to attention in the chair, as if every single muscle and tendon and sinew had been ratcheted tight. And to her horror, he began to scream.

"Dad!"

It was as though she could hear the sanity and soul of her father being ripped apart, burned and torn and eviscerated with every passing moment. Heedless of the cutting manacles, Jessie fought to free herself from the chair as the screaming became more and more desperate, more and more feral. She was sure there could be nothing worse than that inhuman scream that went on forever. In that sound the man who was her father, or even vaguely human inside the mind of ZERO, seemed gone and lost in a world of his own hell.

He let out a new scream, as though a new pain had come to join the others already in evidence and the added urgency of his voice blew her heart to jagged pieces.

" _DAD_!"


	24. Escape

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Decided to do two chapters at once again. It just flows better that way in my opinion.
> 
> Enjoy!

"Got it!" Benton sat back on his heels triumphantly.

"Nice work, Dr Quest," Hadji nodded approvingly. He moved towards the small opening now visible in the back corner of the shipping container, the place where the boxcar-sized crate would have been hooked in to its transport to provide temperature controls or oxygen for sensitive materials. They had located the panel after extensive searching in the near pitch-blackness, illuminated only by light from their watches, and it had taken several attempts to force it open.

It had been more than an hour since they had been locked up. More than an hour since Race and Jessie had disappeared into whatever Surd had planned.

"I don't hear anything out there," Jonny reported from where he had kept "watch" near the doors.

"Good. Then let's get out of here and find Race and Jessie," Benton said, lowing himself to his stomach to shimmy through the tiny opening. It was dim on the other side, as this area hadn't had much in the way of lighting to begin with, but the light was still bright in comparison. He squinted as he pulled his feet under him and waited, crouching, for his eyes to adjust.

"Which way?" Jonny whispered as he followed his father, folding himself behind a large box for concealment.

"I believe I can retrace our steps accurately," Hadji said softly, peeking around, "but we shall have to be cautious."

"Tell me something I don't know," Jonny rolled his eyes.

"All right," Benton stood, seeing no guards, "let's move. We've got to find Race and Jessie and get some kind of warning out to somebody. Either Preventers or straight to our new friends. They can probably do something about this."

Hadji took the lead and began leading the way, focusing more on recalling the path back to where they had been parted from the Bannons than on what might have happened in the meantime. But they had only just left the large empty area where the storage container had been when he stopped suddenly.

"What is it, Hadj?" Jonny asked.

"I…do not know," he hedged. It wasn't quite true – Hadji did have some idea as to what he was feeling, having experienced it before and not long ago, but the explanations would take too long. Still, it was with a somewhat steadied heart that he added, "Come. Let us continue."

They walked in silence, following the corridors in hopefully the right direction, when Hadji ducked backwards around a corner, pulling Jonny and Benton with him.

"What…?" Dr Quest began, but trailed off at the warning in his adopted son's eyes. They crouched in a shadow, straining to hear something, when there was the distinctive sound of footsteps approaching.

The steps came closer and closer and Jonny and Hadji tensed, a plan between them without even needing to signal. When the man passed the corridor down which they had sought shelter, both of them charged forward, catching him off-guard. Jonny threw a solid punch while Hadji swept for the feet, and in seconds the patroller was down and unconscious.

"See if there's anything on him we can use," Dr Quest said, stepping out of the shadows and looking at his boys with a very small smile on his face. He might not condone violence as a normal course of action, but these circumstances were hardly normal; he had to be proud of their teamwork and their effectiveness – they had handled the threat with as little risk as possible and no bloodshed.

As Jonny bent down to fiddle with the man's pockets, a shadow fell over him.

"That was well-executed."

Jonny didn't feel too bad about letting out a surprised little sound and launching himself backwards instinctively. He wound up sitting on the floor looking up at, of all people, Chang Wufei, one eyebrow raised in arch amusement.

"But that was less so."

"Aw, give them a break, Waffles. Nobody can hear us if we don't want them to know we're there. At least he didn't shriek from seeing your face."

"Zero Two," Wufei growled as the braided man seemed to pop out of nowhere beside him. They both wore their same flight-suit gear from the previous missions, and Duo carried a fair-sized bag hanging from one shoulder.

"What are you two doing here?" Hadji asked, secretly pleased he had maintained his stoicism even though his heart was fluttering away like a hummingbird's wings. His spiritual awareness had given him the slightest inkling that their friends may already be present or on their way, just as it had guided him during the hotel hijacking, but that was not nearly enough warning when faced with two effectively invisible Gundam pilots.

"Well, come on! Isn't it obvious? This is a rescue!" Duo grinned.

"How did you find us?" Jonny pulled himself to his feet.

"We intercepted a transmission between Rage and this location," Wufei reported. "Zero One picked up the trace he'd been following for the unknown backer of Rage's activities. We didn't know you were here until we got close enough for Zero Four to realize it."

"What about Race and Jessie?" Benton demanded. "He's got them...and he's..."

"We know," Duo said quickly. "The others are taking care of it. We're just here to extract you and let the Preventers team clean up the place."

"If you will forgive me, that doesn't seem to be your preferred method of handling things," Hadji put in. Wufei raised an eyebrow at him and snorted.

"No, you're correct. But with hostages in place, it became necessary to adjust our typical strategy of simply demolishing the compound and any enemies within it. You are all safer if we see to your well-being than if we allowed the regular agents to do that."

"We found out there are explosives wired all through here," Duo put in. "When the greenies come in guns a-blazing, anybody we don't want dead needs to be outta here just in case. Not a hard call, really."

"The other agents can't be that bad," Jonny frowned. "I mean, they're professionals. Right?"

"They aren't _that_ bad," Duo smirked, "but a certain blond we all know didn't want to leave his friends to anybody but the best. And compared to us, they absolutely stink. And this is sensitive stuff besides."

"Especially with ZERO in the mix," Wufei added. "Now, enough. We have to move."

 

-==OOO==-

 

Jessie hadn't thought there could be anything worse than her father's raw-throated screaming. _But there was._ His now-hoarse exclaiming was dying down, not slowly, but in stuttering stops like an outboard motor puttering at the end of its gas tank. And in those silences, there was something slack in what she could see of his face that was abjectly terrifying. At least when he was screaming he was alive enough to react.

"Dad, please," Jessie fought the harshness in her own throat to keep talking to him. "Please, dad, you've got to hang in there."

"Don't fret," Surd's voice was evilly sweet with false concern, "since it's just a matter of moments before it will be your turn."

A gunshot echoed and the speaker-camera unit fizzed and died.

Jessie whipped her head around to see three figures in the doorway. Front and center was Heero, gun out. He narrowed his eyes darkly. "Not today."

"Zero Three, get Jessie," Quatre ordered sharply. "Zero One, keep a lookout."

"Acknowledged." The Japanese young man set himself in the far corner of the room where he could see everything. It was only then that she noticed Bandit trotting beside him as content as if he were at Jonny's heels.

"It's going to be all right," Trowa said, moving to her side and pulling out picks for the locks. His voice was even and warm, the same he used to calm the lions at the circus. "We're going to get you out of this."

"How did you find us?"

"It's not important. We just have to get you out of here safely."

"But dad..." she said, fighting tears that wouldn't stop falling. "He's..."

"I know," and Trowa caught her chin and met her panicked eyes with his blazing green ones, "but he's got the best help there is. Trust us."

Jessie looked up to realize that Quatre had crossed the room and was beside her father.

"What about the shutdown process? Surd activated ZERO remotely. If he just pulls the helmet off..."

"Trust us," Trowa repeated, snapping open the restraints and giving her a hand to draw her to her feet.

Leaning over where Race was bound, Quatre took a deep, deep breath and steadied himself. He could do this. He must do this. One more deep breath and Quatre put both hands on Race's shoulders. At once he was inundated with the feelings from Race locked within ZERO, rage and pain and hysteria and terror and a heartsickness and mindlessness that would have made him gag if he wasn't all too familiar with it. But these were what he had expected, and Quatre could handle that much.

 _Race Bannon_ , he called with his very heart, _hear me_. _I'm going to save you from ZERO and I'm going to pull you out. But I don't have time to do this nicely, so please forgive me._

Summoning everything in himself, Quatre _pushed_.

ZERO might be a system predicated on neural patterns and cognitive function, but Quatre knew better than anyone could that it responded to emotion, too. That, in fact, the will of a powerful-enough heart could drive its very programming. Rage had used his own emotions to override Quatre and force ZERO to accept the input. Quatre knew now that he could do the same.

With a great deal more power than he had ever possessed before, Quatre dove into himself, even as he was steadily subsuming Race, and found a Gundanium-strong core of will and focus. It was this he shoved forward along with a very, very simple command, much easier than Rage's complex desire to produce the destructive missile strategy he had accomplished before. Quatre simply demanded that ZERO shut down or face annihilation. And he meant it. The risk was great enough that the Preventers would kill Race Bannon rather than let ZERO run for one more minute.

 _As powerful as you are_ , Quatre thought at the system in the midst of it, _even you will back down to survive. You've killed weaker pilots for less. I have compromised your user and I am in control. Surrender to me or be destroyed._

He could feel ZERO crawling around in Race's mind, could almost sense the moment the program accepted defeat and allowed its survival protocol to kick in and override its current objectives. A moment later, the lights on the helmet died and the almost inaudible buzz that filled the room faded even as the chair's manacles clicked open. Quatre shifted his focus back into himself and threw the helmet to the ground before ZERO could recalculate.

"Race? Can you hear me?" he demanded. He could feel still the overwhelming imbalance created by ZERO in his friend, but he didn't care. He just needed Race even partially conscious, and as the man's eyes started to blink and something began to crawl into them, he acted.

"I'm really sorry," Quatre said breathlessly, "but this is for your own good."

And putting his hands on either side of Race's face, Quatre _pushed_ once more. But this time, he wasn't pushing through Race to ZERO – he was overtaking Race himself.

"Dad?" Jessie started to reach for her father but Trowa caught her arm.

"Wait until he lets go."

A long silence later and Quatre, breathing haggardly and slightly pale, stepped back. Trowa released Jessie and instead pulled his lover towards him, holding his shoulders tightly.

"I'm all right," he said softly, even as he leaned into the safety and stability and restorative love and sanity that he found in Trowa's heart. Not to mention what was being very firmly projected from Heero across the room. "I've locked everything away so Race can cope. I'll have to let it go when we get out of here, though, but I think it will hold for now."

Jessie turned to her father and, to her astonishment, found him watching her a little curiously. He looked perfectly fine, his face neutral and relaxed. And it wasn't the oddly stoic look Trowa had worn when blocking Quatre, but instead something serene, almost blissfully calm. She threw herself into his arms.

"Dad, are you okay?"

"Sure, kiddo. A little confused," he looked at her questioningly, his voice roughened. "Can you clear up where we are and what's going on?"

"Later," came Heero's sharp voice. He moved away from the wall and joined them. "Let's go."

"Take the rear," Quatre said as Trowa released him and he straightened up, looking still a little wan but otherwise okay. "Zero Three, you've got point. Race, you're in front of me."

As they followed Trowa into the corridor, Race walking as if he had just woken up from a nap, a bit dazedly as if he wasn't quite awake, Jessie leaned forward to whisper to Quatre, "What did you do?"

"I blocked him," he whispered back. "I wrapped up everything ZERO did to him and locked it away until we're out of here. We needed him mobile and calming him down from it would have taken too long."

"You can do that?" she was astonished.

"I can now."

 

-==OOO==-

 

"So, are the others okay? Did they find Race and Jessie and Bandit?" Jonny asked. If he'd picked a bad time to ask he knew the two ex-pilots would have given him a death-glare worthy of Heero, but neither did, so he assumed they felt safe enough to talk for a moment. They hadn't seen any guards in more than twenty minutes or so, after all. He didn't remember this part of the colony from their impromptu tour, but they seemed to be heading towards the truly incomplete areas, where they would need the space-worthy flight-suits pulled out of Duo's bag for each of them.

"They did. They are already on their way," Wufei answered.

"Are they okay? Can we talk to them?"

"Nope," Duo actually turned and grinned. "No comms between the units this time, just local frequencies for the helmets. Too much of a liability with ZERO clued into them. Plus they could be hacked by your new friends."

"Then how do you know all is well?" Hadji wanted to know.

"Irrelevant right now," Wufei dismissed him. "All that matters is reaching the rendezvous point."

Jonny and Hadji exchanged a look and shrugged. Benton tipped his head to one side thoughtfully, but said nothing. They continued following after their rescuers, climbing over and around large piles of supplies brought in for the construction of the colony until arriving at last at an access hatch that could only lead to an airlock on the outside edge of the colony.

"Zero Two," came Wufei's voice, a little tight, "are you certain?"

"Yeah," and there was only confidence in the smile, not even a bit of teasing. "I'm sure."

"Very well," Wufei went back to being all business. "Put on your helmets," he commanded the other three. "Our escape is going to require a certain amount of...well, you'll see." He turned away and yanked his own helmet into place, then checked the small supply of oxygen built into the flight suit – it wouldn't be enough for long, but it should be enough to keep all of them alive in the void of space for a little while at least.

As the Quests did what he'd ordered, checking their own oxygen supplies a little nervously, Duo reached into his braid and pulled out a small coil of impossibly thin wire. One end was looped, and he affixed this to his wrist. Then he tucked the braid away and pulled on his own helmet, meeting Wufei's black eyes calmly.

"When you're ready, Zero Five."

Wufei personally reinspected the three Quests and their equipment, finding nothing to correct but not taking the chance. He moved into the airlock and they followed.

"The shuttle is docked just outside. Zero Two is going to lead the way. He'll have this tether in case anything goes wrong and you will use the line once it is set up to transfer yourselves over. I will cover the rear. Our job is to get to the shuttle and bring it around to meet the others at the main hangar and possibly provide cover for their escape. Questions?"

They shook their heads and Duo opened the airlock door to space.

And promptly ducked the incoming gunfire.

"Dammit!" he exclaimed, huddling in the doorway. "Hang on. I'll get there!"

He leaned back into the airlock with his hands braced on the door-frame as though he were a slingshot and without warning threw himself into space with all his strength. The Quests and Wufei looked in surprise, realizing what Duo had noticed as soon as he'd stuck his head out the door – the shuttle had been cut free and was no longer docked to the colony. Instead, it was floating many yards away and still moving off. And now Duo was hurtling towards it.

Five or six men with guns were approaching their position in real space combat suits, not the flimsy flight-suits they wore, and Wufei drew his ever-present sword, even as he handed the end of Duo's tether to Jonny before it could snap tight.

"As soon as he makes the shuttle, go after him, all three of you. I'll hold them here."

And he hooked one foot on an outcropping on the door, menacing the attackers who were far better equipped with small jets on their suits to allow them to control their movements. Still, that didn't save the first two who got within Wufei's reach. He did not even bother to kill them – he merely slit their suits open and let them float away screaming until the airlessness of space claimed them.

"Come on!" came the command from the speaker built into the helmets. The Quests looked up to see that Duo had somehow managed to aim correctly amidst the chaos and was clinging to the side of the shuttle.

"Here dad," Jonny said, taking the loop on their end of the tether and putting it around his father's arm before he could protest. "We'll hold on to you."

"Better get a good kickoff," Duo advised. Indeed, the shuttle was still floating away – it looked like it must have weathered some kind of small explosion to give it that much momentum.

"All right. On three, boys," Benton said. He took the loop and tightened it around his bicep, then locked both hands around the thin cord before him. Jonny latched onto his left elbow and Hadji onto his right and he pinned his arms against his sides to trap them against him. They spared a glance to the men who were still shooting, but only two remained, completely distracted by Wufei. As one, the three crouched against the side of the colony, legs under them, ready to spring.

"One...Two...Three!"

On cue, all three kicked off as hard as they could, Jonny and Hadji pushing themselves close to Benton with their bodies. For a heart-pounding moment, it looked like they would miss the shuttle entirely as they sailed through the emptiness at an acute angle. But then Duo yanked on the tether and it jerked them in his direction. They collided with the shuttle with only a little momentum to spare, Jonny and Hadji both putting their outside arms out to soften the impact and hold on while Benton clung to them tightly.

"Zero Five!" Duo bellowed. The shuttle was a lot farther from the colony now.

"How much should I trust you, Zero Two?" came the question as Wufei cut down one of his remaining foes.

"Completely." And in contrast to his usual tone, he sounded absolutely still and serious and solid.

Wufei said nothing, but nodded sharply. Duo turned to the Quests as he absently keyed in the command to open the airlock.

"Hold on here, no matter what."

"But what...?" Hadji began.

Duo turned away, not listening. This would take all his focus. He watched Wufei carefully, waiting for the plan he knew was in the other pilot's mind, the one he would not signal or telegraph in any way but was the only course of action left to him.

As Wufei engaged his last opponent, he let go of his hold on the colony, floating free in space. It was extremely risky – a blast from the gun or the maneuvering jets on the goon's suit would shove him away and even a few yards from his current position would make him impossible to retrieve before it was too late. But Wufei was a master of hand-to-hand engagements and managed to dig his sword into the attacker and make a controlled leap off his back like a springboard.

At the same instant, Duo launched himself off the shuttle with as much force as he could manage. Wufei was coming up at a weird angle and Duo had to reach him on the arc of a curve, trusting not only that neither of them had mistimed their movements, but that the shuttle had not already been carried farther than the length of the tether that bound him to the Quests.

Duo reached out his hands as he barreled through space and held his breath. A miss by even a few inches and Wufei might run out of air before they could get in the shuttle and pilot to wherever he'd drifted. Especially because he knew there was a tiny leak in the Chinese agent's suit – he'd seen the shot that loosened a seam as it grazed him. They had almost no time. Wufei was keeping both arms tightly against his body, both trying to pin closed the breach of his suit and to give himself the most momentum. It was entirely up to Duo to catch him.

The cord on Duo's wrist snapped tight at the end of its length and he jerked violently to the side. He'd expected as much and stretched.

To just barely close his hands around one of Wufei's ankles.

As the momentum of his jump and their interception sent them spinning back towards the shuttle, Duo shifted his grip until he had his arms wrapped around Wufei's torso, facing the back of Wufei's helmet. They were near the tail of the shuttle and Duo was able to bounce himself into position so that it was his back and not Wufei's head that crashed into the unforgiving titanium. He bit back a groan.

"Get inside and pull us in now!" he shouted instead, knowing Wufei was busy conserving his air. The pull on his wrist was all he could feel to prove the Quests were doing just that. Duo loosened one arm and used it to help propel himself and Wufei towards where the shuttle airlock stood open. He barely bothered to check and see if the Quests were in with him before slamming the button that sealed them safely inside and restored the oxygen in the small space.

"Come on, Wufei," he said, turning the limp body over so he could see the face in the helmet, then ripping it off. "You gotta be okay."

"Nice work, Duo," came a slightly high-pitched and rough voice. Wufei's black eyes swam with spots, but he fixed them on Duo's anyway and managed a small smile, not a smirk, his energy returning as he breathed deeply again.

"Any time," Duo smiled too.

And if the Quests were surprised to hear Duo speak to him without calling him by a silly name, or to hear Wufei refer to Duo by something other than "Maxwell," if they were touched by the sheer amount of trust the two must have shared to pull off that stunt, well, the least they could do was to carefully not smile at the single instant of open and genuine friendship on their faces.


	25. Consequences

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See? Aren't you glad you got this one too?
> 
> Enjoy!

"So, what's the plan?" Race asked, looking inquiringly at the three Gundam pilots.

"Well, it would be ideal if we could use the Strataquest," Quatre answered softly, eyes half-lidded as his mind raced through their options. "I assume it was compromised, which is how you got here in the first place?"

"Right," Jessie didn't even wait for her father to be confused. She still felt cold inside – not only had she watched her dad suffer so badly in ZERO, but now he was acting perfectly normally as if he didn't remember anything of the last hours. It was beyond eerie.

"It was hacked by Rage's backer who now has access to ZERO," Heero said, not looking up from where he was keeping an eye on the corridor beyond. They had taken shelter in a storeroom because the alarm had obviously been raised and it was much easier to plan when not actively dodging and avoiding discovery.

"Can you beat it?" Trowa was curled over Bandit, whose impulse was to growl at every passing enemy who charged through the hallway. But with Trowa to calm him, he managed not to alert anyone to their hiding place.

Heero did not dignify that with a response, but he did shoot Trowa a very clear _look_.

"All right. Then we'll try for the Strataquest," Quatre decided. "If it doesn't work, we've always got the backup with the others."

"Won't Surd's goons be expecting that, though?" Jessie put in. "I mean, they have to know we'll go back to our own shuttle."

"Of course they will," Trowa replied. "Or they will until Zero Two and Zero Five start making trouble." He allowed himself a small smile.

A soft chirp sounded from the space-suits the ex-pilots wore and they all tensed at the sound.

"That's our warning," Quatre explained. "Preventers will be here in less than 20 minutes. We should either make our move now or wait for the cavalry to clear the place and hope they're better than we expect." He stifled a giggle at the absolutely dire look Heero made at the latter option. "Okay, then. Zero Two and Zero Five…" he trailed off for a minute before his eyes sharpened, "I think they're almost in position. Let's go."

Heero nodded sharply and opened the door, waiting to take rearguard again. Trowa gave Bandit one more comforting pat before setting the dog down beside Heero, who fixed the pup with a stern glare. The five made their way into the corridor once more, moving quietly without any conversation. It was only a few twists and turns before they were crouched on a high catwalk overlooking the hangar where the Strataquest had docked.

The hangar that was, predictably, full of people.

"How are we gonna get down there?" Race asked.

"Watch," Quatre's eyes lit up.

Only a moment later there was a tremendous noise outside the airlock, and a new siren began to wail. Men were shouting at one another and, to Jessie's amusement, Lorenzo seemed to be in the midst of them, trying to keep things orderly and failing miserably. But the net result was that most of those in the hangar began rushing off to deal with whatever had happened.

"That was Zero Two and Zero Five and the Quests," Trowa informed them. "Providing us a distraction and, if we need it, a ride."

"But we don't." Heero didn't so much as hesitate before fluidly jumping over the guardrail and letting the weak gravity draw him down in a controlled fall. He landed beside one of the access panels of the Strataquest and ran a line from it to his ever-present laptop. Typing furiously, he didn't even look up.

"There's somebody coming!" Jessie pointed to a figure who was almost on top of Heero though probably hadn't seen him yet if his lack of alarm was any indication.

"Got it," Trowa pulled out a gun and snapped off a pair of shots whose noise was easily lost in the raging siren. The guard dropped without a sound. At a pair of identical looks from the Bannons, he turned the gun so they could see the red cartridge that signified he was shooting tranqs.

"Zero One is ready," Quatre said. "You two go first."

Neither Race nor Jessie had seen any indication that Heero was anything but totally absorbed in his work, but if Quatre said he'd signaled, that was enough for them. They copied Heero's action perfectly, dropping from the walkway and bouncing easily before landing. Quatre and Trowa followed, spread a little farther out in a protective posture, Trowa again with Bandit under an arm.

"So?" Jessie asked the Japanese man.

"The shuttle will not quite work the way it did before, but it'll be enough," he answered, snapping the laptop closed as the shuttle door opened. "Let's go."

Jessie only wished Jonny had been there to see. When they fired up the Strataquest's engines and took off, Heero overriding the hangar's airlock door controls for their exit, Lorenzo managed to run back into the hangar in time to make a comically surprised face while Jessie cheerfully waved goodbye out the window. She was going to remember that for a long time.

"Is that them?" Race asked as they passed into space, pointing at the unfamiliar shuttle deftly evading some attempts to disable it, looping about like some kind of deranged dragonfly.

"Definitely Duo piloting," Trowa said without cracking a smile. But his eyes were bright nonetheless. "They'll break off now and meet us at the rendezvous."

"And everybody's okay?" Jessie looked at Quatre carefully.

"Yes. We'll have some work to do when we're all together again," and he only barely nodded at Race, who was busy looking through the Strataquest's systems to figure out what Heero had patched to clear ZERO's influence, "but everything is fine."

"Depends on your definition, Cat!" came a bright voice. A screen flicked on to show Duo and Wufei and the three Quests strapped into the cockpit. "But close enough."

"Frequency is fully secured, Zero Five?" Heero demanded.

"Obviously," Wufei replied.

"You worry too much, Hee-chan!" Duo grinned. "Anyway, who wants to fill us all in on things while we clear out for the Preventers to try to do their jobs? Emphasis on _try_. Bets on whether Une calls us to clean up after them?"

In the end Dr Quest gave the pilots a basic summary of events. He detailed Surd's plans as best he could, but there was so much yet they didn't know. And when he turned to Race and Jessie to find out what had happened to them, he found himself smoothly interrupted by Quatre.

"So, how do you know Jeremiah Surd? He's in the Preventers files, but we show nothing of this magnitude. And why does he hate you all so much?"

"He's a scientist, used to be the top of both chemical and digital military research before he went a little crazy. He became tetraplegic because of me," Race answered. "When I worked in the service years ago, I was part of the team that stopped him while he was attempting a terrorist action using chemical weaponry and the bust went bad. He's been kinda mad ever since, and he's tried to get back at me, and all of us, ever since."

"Yeah, while some of you were out fighting wars, we've been tangling with a _supervillain_ ," Jonny quipped.

"It's worse than that," Heero didn't even look up from where he was still piloting. "Surd may well have been the originator of ZERO. There was something I turned up in my original investigation that suggests it, and he does have the background. We can't ask _certain individuals,_ " and the five pilots could not help but remember the Doctors of their once-acquaintance, "but I'll bet Howard knows about him. From what you've said and what I found, he knows too much to not have been a part of the Operation Meteor project from the start."

"Oh, that is so not good," Jessie let out a breath.

"No kidding, Red," Duo nodded. "What's say we get back to the colony and go from there?"

"Acknowledged," Heero responded. Then, with an uncharacteristic smirk added, "Assuming that bucket of Preventers garbage can keep up with a real ship."

And he cut the connection and pushed the engines hard.

That was the trip that taught the Quests not to ever underestimate the pilots and their continual desire to test every new craft presented to them. Or, as Hadji might have put it later when they weren't there to overhear him, a "reckless fascination with attempting to achieve super-sonic speeds without adequate preparation."

 

-==OOO==-

 

Once again in the familiar hangar, Jonny and Hadji and Benton wasted no time rushing over to make sure for themselves that Race and Jessie were all right. But strangely, they were given almost no time for a reunion before the pilots hustled them up to the rooms they had so recently vacated.

"Race," Quatre said amiably as he led the way through the dining room to a fair-sized office beyond, one none of the Quests had yet seen, "I know Heero already has the mission reports from your initial encounter with Surd, but would you mind reviewing what he's got and filling in any blanks? There might be something that would help us, some detail the officials left out but you remember."

"Sure thing," Race nodded complacently. Heero stepped over to the computer and within a few moments had the proper documentation displayed upon the screen. He rose and offered Race his seat.

As soon as Race sat down, Quatre motioned silently to the others to return to the dining room with him, leaving Trowa in the room leaning against the doorframe while Duo loudly proclaimed something about getting everyone a snack.

"Sorry," Quatre said as he closed the door softly behind everyone. Duo took off while the other pilots took up positions near the door. "I don't mean to be brusque with you. It's just that I need to explain this as quickly as I can."

Benton listened carefully, his eyes growing wider with horror as Jessie and Quatre described in turn what Surd had done and what the blond had managed to mitigate its effects. He glanced at the door with a cold pit swallowing his stomach – Race _had_ seemed unusually distracted and almost placid when they'd first seen him over the shuttle's viewscreen. And now he knew why. Surd had tried to break his mind and soul, and only Quatre's remarkable gift had kept the consequences of that in check for so long.

Come to think of it, now that he was looking for it, he could see a slight energy in Quatre's face that was a trifle unusual, and he surmised even now Quatre was listening for Race.

"Jess, are you okay?" Jonny asked, stepping close to her.

"Don't ask me that right now, all right?" she said tightly. Wordlessly, Hadji stepped up behind her and put an arm around her shoulders. She leaned into him and tipped her head against Jonny's shoulder gratefully.

"So what happens now?" Jonny looked to Quatre.

"Now everybody eats something," Duo announced, returning with a tray laden with food. He didn't even wait before marching through the knot of people and reentering the office. "Here – have a sandwich while you fix the paperwork," he said brightly, passing one to Race who took it with a smile.

"Thanks! I didn't know if it was this chair or my stomach that was making so much noise!"

"He makes a good point," Trowa said, taking a sandwich himself and passing a mug of tea to Quatre. "We could all use this before what comes next."

Benton looked at how pale Jessie was, at the worry in his sons' eyes, and agreed. Feigning a nonchalance he didn't feel, he stepped back into the office, took a sandwich and a mug for himself, and found a seat on a leather sofa in one corner. Hadji steered Jessie in that direction and pushed a sandwich into her hands as well before taking a seat on the floor near Benton's feet; Jonny joined him after a moment's squabble with Duo over the last remaining mug of coffee rather than tea. While to all appearances waiting quietly while Race perused the reports, everyone ate with a certain grim, mechanical quickness, as though preparing for the tension in the room to break unexpectedly.

Jessie, for her part, didn't really pay attention to anyone else, never noticing her own sandwich disappearing, nor the worried gazes of her friends. She just ate automatically, not really looking up from the food or her feet. She wasn't hysterical, not like she had been before. But she was incredibly, to-the-bone afraid. Quatre may have been able to postpone her father's eventual reaction to whatever ZERO had done to him, but he wouldn't prevent it entirely. Surd had said he hoped the system would make her dad crazy and violent enough to try to kill her. But he couldn't. He just…couldn't.

And yet on some terrible level, Jessie knew all too well that a mind manipulated could do practically anything. If Quatre had been capable of committing mass genocide with Rage's chemical weaponry, her father very well could be lost enough to kill her.

"Jessie," Quatre said quietly after a few minutes, interrupting her train of thought, "I shouldn't keep the block I put on Race in place much longer. It will be very painful for him when I release it, though. Are you ready?"

"No," she answered honestly, looking up at last. "But do it anyway."

"All right." He turned back to the room. Almost without even a glance Wufei and Duo suddenly decided to find business elsewhere and left. Quatre looked to Trowa and Heero, but they both shook their heads at him and he nodded in understanding; since they could probably feel his own apprehension, he couldn't blame them for not wanting to leave him. But he stepped over to Benton first.

"What will it do to him?" Dr Quest asked softly, enough that Race remained entirely absorbed in his task.

"I don't really know," he replied. "I've never done this before and ZERO takes people differently. It could be very dangerous. It might be best if you left."

"No," he said solidly. "No, I won't leave Race alone to this. But maybe…" He started to look at his sons.

"We're staying," Jonny affirmed curtly. And if he was particularly tense remembering his own release from ZERO, he hid it admirably.

"Then everyone get back, please." Quatre waited until his order had been obeyed before he approached Race. The white-haired man looked up from the screen and smiled.

"What's on your mind, Quatre?"

"Race, I'm very sorry," and he swallowed against the bile rising in his throat at what he was about to do. But he knew it was better to let Race try to process those memories and feelings now than to have them explode sometime later when no one would be ready for it. Before Race could question him, he reached a hand out and laid it on the broad shoulder before him.

 _Remember_.

The change happened before almost anyone could react. At one moment, Quatre was standing before Race, stretching to touch him. In the next, Race was howling like a wounded animal and had overturned the chair as he launched himself. Quatre had already dodged to one side, so Race went barreling for the first threat his eyes found – Benton Quest.

"Dad!" Jessie shouted, and only Jonny grabbing her shoulders saved her from trying to rush into the mad charge her father made towards his best friend.

But Heero and Trowa were quicker. Trowa placed himself in front of Race while Heero dove for his legs. There was no finesse in Race's movements – he was swinging blindly like a rabid bear – and Trowa easily blocked the blows. He took only one more step before Heero leveraged his seemingly little weight and pulled Race backwards over him, crashing him to the ground.

"Quatre!" Heero shouted as the man fell on him.

The Arab was also already moving, and just before Race's head bounced off the floor he was there, catching and cradling his skull to prevent him from being hurt. Race ignored the small body pinning his legs from underneath in favor of reaching up to grip at the new foe looming over him. But again Trowa was there, neatly intercepting the grab. Quatre tangled his fingers in the short, white hair, and closed his eyes. Race fell still.

"What…what is he doing?" Hadji found his voice.

"He's not blocking again," Trowa answered. "He's trying to lead him through it, the way he does when any of us is lost."

Race resumed fighting again after a moment and Quatre opened his eyes. Trowa and Heero had both taken the opportunity to tighten their holds, but that didn't prevent Race from thrashing about, bellowing incoherently.

"I either need a lot of time, or…" Quatre trailed off. Then his eyes lit up. "Dr Quest! He trusts you. Come here – you can help me!"

To his credit, Benton did not hesitate and instead knelt beside the blond. Quatre grabbed a hand and guided it to Race's shoulder before settling one of his hands on Race's forehead and the other on Dr Quest's arm. His eyes fluttered closed and a moment later Benton's did as well.

It became very quiet for a while. Then Jessie spoke a little roughly.

"Jonny, was it…was it like that when you…?"

"No," he shook his head. "No, not like that. For me…" he trailed off and met Hadji's knowing gaze. Then he coughed and went on, "For me it was like waking up from the worst nightmare you've ever had when you're so tired you don't really know you've stopped dreaming. I might have been fighting a little when I first came out of ZERO, but by the time they dragged me to the others I was pretty much just a lump."

"Whereas when Heero emerged from ZERO," came Duo's solemn and unexpected voice from behind them, "he tried to strangle Cat and I almost had to kill him myself or lose both of them."

"We know he wanted us to leave," Wufei held up a hand at the death-glare Heero had directed towards them over where he pinned Race's knees, "but the privacy he wished for Bannon is foolish compared with his need for us."

"What do you mean?" Jessie asked. She was grateful – anything was a better topic for her to focus on than the feral person who was supposed to be her father, the person whose mind had been so thoroughly unraveled that she could see the sweat trickling down Quatre's face as he tried to save it.

"Quatre and Dr Quest are doing for him what Quatre did for me on the satellite," Heero answered, his tight grip not slackening in the slightest. "Quatre doesn't know Race, so he needs Dr Quest to be able to reach him. He is straining himself to create a pathway for Race to fight his way out of what ZERO has done to his mind."

"ZERO rewrites neural patterns," Hadji said. "So does that mean Quatre is attempting to correct them by his sheer force of will and empathy alone?"

"Exactly," Wufei answered. "With one of us, it would be difficult. For a stranger, it is exhausting, for he must not only ensure the changes he makes are correct in a mind with which he is not familiar, but he must also protect himself as well as Dr Quest from the effects of the process."

"Can we help?" Jonny wanted to know.

"No," Trowa actually smiled a little. "Just trust him. He's all right. He's strong enough for this."

But a moment later there was a shout that rattled the room. Three shouts, to be precise.

Trowa and Heero threw themselves fully at Race, who was bucking wildly, almost foaming at the mouth in his ZERO-induced madness. Wufei and Duo streaked across the room and each hooked their arms around Quatre, pulling him up and away, neither missing the shakiness of his legs that refused to hold him or the gasping rattle of his breathing. Duo pushed him into a chair and stood protectively over him while Wufei went back and yanked Dr Quest, scarcely in better shape than Quatre, away as well.

"What is it?" Jessie demanded.

"Does it matter?" Wufei demanded. With Duo standing guard over Quatre and Dr Quest, he advanced on the still-fighting Race. His arm flashed out with lightning quickness and Race fell still, forced into unconsciousness by Wufei's uncanny knowledge of pressure-points.

"Dad?" Jonny hedged around the perimeter of the room and got to his father's elbow. "Are you okay?"

"I don't really know. I'm not even sure how to explain what I have experienced." He failed to suppress a shudder. "But if that is even a bit of what exposure to ZERO does to the human mind, I vow here and now never to design anything remotely like it ever again." He pulled Jonny close at the remembrance that his boy had been through something quite similar. "I'm so glad you're okay."

"I had help," Jonny shared a quick look with Hadji, "and I wasn't so far gone."

"Yeah, what is happening, Cat?" Duo wanted to know. The blond looked up from where he'd been staring wide-eyed at his knees or the floor – definitely not Race or anyone else – as Heero and Trowa, both assured that Race would be out for a while, gathered around him. Wufei stood near, but in position to intercept Race were it necessary.

"It's…sort of hard to explain," Quatre began. "We're on the line between empathy and something else and I don't really know how to tell you _how_ I'm doing what I'm doing, but here goes. The brain's natural patterns, the brainwaves that define how a person thinks and feels and perceives the world, they're kind of like a web, intricate and interconnected and dependent upon all the places one strand meets another. ZERO tends to break those strands and reattach them in different places, changing the overall pattern. Normally I can identify the places the pattern is wrong and help the mind repair the connections itself by finding the heart of the person and drawing it out, resetting the brain, I guess."

"Normally. So what happened with Race?" Benton asked.

"Well, even with you helping me find the connections that felt wrong to you, the ones that ZERO had changed and needed to be fixed, there was a lot of resistance to repairing them."

"Is that what I was doing?" Dr Quest mused to himself. But he nodded for Quatre to continue.

"The pattern has been reprogrammed somehow. It's…like a mental block, I guess. A psychological trigger that changes everything. And when that trigger is tripped, his whole mind shifts its configuration to something ZERO implanted."

"So, like with the gears on a truck, you put it in drive and it goes ahead like normal, but if you shift into reverse everything goes backwards?" Duo asked.

"Close enough," Quatre nodded. "It's deeply embedded, so much so that it can't just be the influence of ZERO on the brain. Surd must have done something, programmed some specific command so that every time Race's mind triggers the switch, the ZERO-induced madness takes over. Like a subliminal message implanted during hypnosis."

"Can you remove it?" Wufei's voice was cold.

"With time, probably." Quatre cradled his forehead in his hands, elbows on his knees, shoulders slumped. "I think. I've never done anything like this before. I wasn't even sure if I'd be able to lock it down the first time, but I managed that. So maybe I can do this. But I just don't know for sure and I can't fix it quickly without risking hurting him."

"So, every time he is triggered, he will revert to what we just saw," Hadji said softly.

"What's the trigger?" Heero asked, eyes narrowing.

Quatre sighed and looked up, face drawn and sad. "Jessie. Without my block in place, every time he sees Jessie, he will be overtaken by ZERO's reprogramming."

Everyone turned to her. She had heard the words, but somehow they didn't quite make sense. She felt cold and numb and bizarrely neutral. She idly wondered if this was how Trowa had felt after cutting off his own emotions when Quatre had been in ZERO. It was uncomfortable, but bearable, and vaguely, unsettlingly, comforting; apparently not feeling pain had its advantages after all.

"Sit, Jess," Jonny said, grabbing her elbow and dragging her to a chair. "You're in shock."

"No, I'm not," she answered automatically as her legs folded under her. "Or maybe I am. But I'm fine."

"Jessie," Dr Quest moved to stand beside her and put a hand on her shoulder, "it's going to be all right. We'll fix this. And you're not alone now or ever. We're going to make this right."

"You said Surd did this?" came Duo's voice, near to shaking with anger.

"He must have," Quatre replied. "ZERO by itself wouldn't bother to do something like this. But if Surd is changing the program's core intent, to put his own mind into the system and through it into whatever he wants, he could have added just about anything to its capabilities."

"He has to be stopped," Trowa said softly, but the quietness of the words belied their steel.

"Oh, I am _so_ way ahead of you," Duo put in, his face a mask of rage and cold fury. "Even for a bad guy, this is going too far."

Jessie was puzzled momentarily why he was so mad and then remembered – Duo was an orphan. The way he had talked about her having a family, a real one, about how he depended on his bond with the other pilots; of course he would see Surd deliberately cutting a family apart in a particularly harsh light.

"In the meantime, Winner, can you restore whatever you did to prevent him from reverting?" Wufei asked.

"Yes, I think so," Quatre said wearily. "But it's a strain on us both. There's no telling how long it will hold in his mind, especially since I don't know how it held in place as long as it did given the extent of the damage. It will fail eventually."

"Then you have to stay away from him," Heero looked at Jessie unflinchingly. His whole demeanor was utterly stoic, the set of his eyes unforgiving. "If Quatre's block breaks, we cannot risk you being near enough to trigger him."

"For that matter," Wufei added, "from this point on, no one so much as mentions her to Bannon until this has been resolved. For all intents and purposes, she does not exist if you are in the room with him or communicating with him in any way. Is that understood?"

Jessie's throat went tight and she felt sick. She nodded sharply, aware of the pitying eyes on her, and pushed off the chair. She just couldn't be here anymore. Dodging Dr Quest's attempt to stop her and refusing to heed Jonny and Hadji calling her back, she quit the room and found herself leaving the apartment entirely. But she didn't go down to the hangar – too many faces, too many people who might care. Instead she turned the other way, to where the complex let out into the colony itself. In a sea of strangers, she could be alone with herself.

Because if she couldn't be her father's daughter, she needed some time before she would be ready again to be anything else.


	26. Interconnected

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The middle of this chapter has sort of a lengthy flashback (originally I put it in sequence and then a) decided I liked to hint at it before revealing it, and b) it made the transition between scenes really awkward in my opinion). But I'm not going to put the whole thing in italics as I normally do. That's just painful on the eyes. I've set it in as a big block quote thing instead -- I hope that works okay!
> 
> Enjoy!

"So?"

Trowa closed the door behind him, stepping across the hallway into the common area where Duo, Hadji, and Jonny sat. Jonny had half-risen as soon as he'd seen Trowa appear, but he'd managed to keep his bursting concern and curiosity constrained to a single word.

"Race is awake again, and Quatre's block seems to be holding for now. Dr Quest and Wufei are explaining things to him. Quatre also asked me to tell you that he feels Jessie will be okay. She's not running away or anything. She just needed some space. But," and he smirked a bit, "It seems Heero's gone after her anyway."

"Heero?" Hadji asked, eyebrow raised. "He seems an unlikely candidate, if you don't mind my saying so. Not that I wish he hadn't, of course. She shouldn't have to be alone, and I can see how we," he gestured to himself and Jonny, "might not be what she needs. We are too close to it. But Heero?"

"Aw, Heero's got a soft spot for girls in trouble," Duo shook his head. "Especially tough girls. Besides, this whole thing is making Cat worry, so he's probably doing this as much to relieve that as anything."

"Is Quatre all right?" Jonny wanted to know. When everyone but Trowa had been asked to leave the room to give him some peace to reset the blocks in Race's mind, he'd seemed very weary; when he'd emerged, Trowa had steered him into the bedroom because the blond had been practically asleep on his feet.

"He will be," Trowa answered. "None of us really understands the work involved in whatever he's doing with his empathy, but he says he just needs to rest a little and I believe him."

"Yes, about that," Hadji said slowly, "it has occurred to me that what Quatre has done with Race, blocking the influence of ZERO, is a great deal beyond what he himself expressed he was capable of only a few days ago. Leading a person out of it, yes, but not suppressing it completely. Agent Chang informed me earlier that Quatre had reported some changes in his empathy after my own actions. I assume this is what he meant?"

Trowa and Duo exchanged a glance. Almost as one, they shrugged.

"Yeah, it's changed a lot, and he's not really making any secret of it, so I guess we can talk about it," Duo answered. "But it's not like we really understand it either. Wufei's the closest thing we have to an expert, and only because his family knew something about all this ooga booga stuff." He turned to Trowa. "How _did_ Cat figure out he could suppress Race, anyway?"

"I'm not entirely sure. If I had to guess, I'd say he reverse-engineered the mental blocks I put on myself to keep him out when he was under the influence of ZERO. Like he said, he's blurring the line between empathy and something else, so I think he's making up the rules as he goes." He smiled a little wickedly at that. "Which is, of course, his favorite sort of game."

"Yeah, I'll bet," Jonny grumbled good-naturedly.

"Hey." Trowa pinned Hadji, who had turned away and was lost in his own thoughts, with a fierce glare. "Stop that." As Hadji furrowed his brow, Trowa crossed his arms against his chest. "You aren't to blame for what you might or might not have done to Quatre. You saved his life."

"You cannot deny that I may be directly responsible for these changes," Hadji returned a little hotly. "In my clumsy attempt to save him from ZERO I may well have actually changed his very psychic makeup. I permitted myself and my gift to be used to harm, and look what has come of it!"

"Yeah, look what has come of it," Duo repeated, tossing his head proudly. "My best friend is alive. What he can do now probably saved Race's life, and Jessie's. Not to mention giving us the best-ever advantage in an infiltration. We ought to be _thanking_ you for whatever you did. Because of you, I can feel him now too." He spread a hand over his heart.

"Advantage? You're saying you have a bond like Heero's?" Jonny echoed. Then his eyes widened. "When you rescued us, you weren't using the comms but you still knew everything was okay. You could feel that Quatre was fine, which is how you could be so sure."

"See! Last time, ZERO hacked our comms. Now we won't ever need them again." Duo grinned. "Geez, Tubs, you're as bad as Cattie at this guilt thing. Can't you just accept that you did a good thing?"

"No I cannot," and Hadji actually rose, curling his hands into fists. "I did not do a good thing at all. I did a bad, unforgivable thing which happened to end well. I invaded the mind of another and changed him irrevocably without his permission. The ends do not justify the means – my choice, though it may have had beneficial consequences, was still a betrayal of all I believe."

"Oh, get down off your high horse," Duo returned. "Does killing some people justify saving others? Of course it does. We do it all the time. I didn't see you crying about the people we killed when we were saving your life and the lives of your family."

"By that logic, you would suggest that anything is acceptable as long as it ends well?"

"Um, yeah!"

"Stop it," Jonny got to his feet as well and moved towards Hadji, a little wary of getting too close to Duo, who was scowling. "This doesn't help anybody."

"What do you care about helping anyway?" Duo pointed at Hadji furiously. "You only want to help if it doesn't impinge on your precious little ethics. You know what happens to people like you? You die, unless people like me stand up and fight for you and defend you. The only reason you have the luxury to think that way is because of the blood _I spilled for you_!"

"Duo!" Trowa's voice snapped, cold and sharp. It was a clear command.

"Yeah, I hear you," he growled in response, turning on his heel. "I'm off for a while." And he stalked out the door towards the hangar.

"I, too, could use some time to myself," Hadji said in a barely-controlled tone before setting off in the opposite direction towards the other set of bedrooms.

Trowa and Jonny traded uncertain looks.

"He's not wrong," Trowa said at last. "But he doesn't mean it the way he sounds."

"I know," Jonny nodded. "He told me and Jessie once that he feels guilty about all the people he killed as badly as the ones he couldn't save. It's gotta hurt to have that much blood on your hands and feel like somebody is telling you what you did is wrong."

"Yeah, but it isn't just that," Trowa leaned on the wall. "Duo didn't need Hadji to tell him it was wrong. Of course he knows killing people is wrong – we all do. But not killing can be worse."

"How?" the question escaped Jonny before he could stop it. But Trowa gave him a sardonic smile anyway.

"Right after the attempted Barton coup, Heero made a promise that he would not take a life ever again. The rest of us blew up our Gundams to live in peace for the rest of our lives. Then Wufei talked us into becoming Preventers agents on an as-needed basis. 'To preserve that peace we bled for,' he argued. And we went along with it. Fighting is something we're all good at, and now we had a chance to use those skills in the right way for the right cause."

He looked away and continued a bit distractedly. "One mission several months in, things went bad. There was a sniper we didn't account for, and by the time we caught onto him, he had his rifle pointed at one of us. We were too far away to stop him from taking the shot any other way but to shoot him down. So we did. Heero broke his promise that day, not because he wanted to kill, but because he had the choice between his own ideals and the life of somebody he cares about. He chose to protect. We all did."

Jonny swallowed at the image. Could he pull a trigger, end the life of someone, take on that burden, even to save his family? He'd like to think he would find a way out, but if he couldn't, what would he do? Truthfully, he didn't know. He'd never had to do it before, though he'd come close a few times.

"We have all killed since then to save lives, even though we never wanted to do it again. I will not kill for orders anymore and I will not kill if I don't have to. But if the choice is between someone pointing a gun at one of us and my pointing a gun at them, I will always kill them first." He looked away.

"And…are you all right with that?" Jonny asked.

Trowa looked up and his green eyes were infinitely old and deep for a moment as he answered.

"No. But I can survive dealing death. I cannot survive the alternative." He pushed off the wall and began to walk away when Jonny called after him.

"Who was the sniper going to kill that made Heero, all of you, whatever, break the promise?"

Trowa looked back over his shoulder and smiled a smile that had nothing good in it.

"It was Duo."

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Benton, I want an explanation. What's going on?" Race asked impatiently.

"Race, it's important that you trust us," Dr Quest said, clasping his hands in front of him and leaning forward to meet his best friend's angrily confused gaze.

"You know I do trust you. But this…this is really strange to say the least," Race sighed. He pulled at the restraints that had enclosed his forearms. He wasn't tied to the chair, but he sure wasn't going to get far with his arms locked together elbow-to-wrist.

Wufei watched the two men carefully. The cuffs had been his suggestion, which had been more of an order really. Race had woken only a few minutes prior, just long enough for Winner to block out the influence of ZERO, and he wasn't taking any chances with a repeat of the previous attack. Like with Quatre's last effort, locking down ZERO's trigger and its effects meant that Race Bannon did not recall anything of the abduction by Surd. But this time, he also did not recall being rescued, nor returning to L2.

"Quatre did say we could probably explain it to him if we do it now, while we're sure the block is in place," Benton said, looking back to Wufei for permission.

The Chinese agent nodded – if nothing else, Bannon deserved to know why he would be restrained and kept from his daughter for the foreseeable future. Plus there was still the possibility he might know something about Surd that would be helpful in the case. He summed up the situation in just a few words.

"Jeremiah Surd compromised the Strataquest, abducted you, and attempted to reprogram your mind using the ZERO System. Surd is also the mastermind behind Ezekiel Rage's attempted genocide, but with the ultimate goal of acquiring a ZERO System for his own use. You were rescued, but the damage done to you has not yet been corrected. Until such time as Winner is able to undo what Surd implanted in your mind, you will have to be closely monitored as you constitute a threat to the safety of anyone around you should the ZERO programming take over."

"So that's why I'm all trussed up?"

"I'm sorry, Race. We didn't want to risk anyone getting hurt," Dr Quest apologized. "We're going to have to take some special precautions with you, just to make sure nothing happens."

"I'm a time-bomb, aren't I?" Race asked knowingly. "It isn't _if_ whatever ZERO put in my head takes over, but _when_. You can't trust me because of that."

"No, we cannot," Wufei nodded. "But it will be much easier for everyone if you simply accept whatever conditions we put upon you."

"Nobody likes this less than I do," Benton added, "but if our positions were reversed…"

"You'd be hogtied and locked in a closet. I know," he sighed again. "If it were anybody but you, Benton, I'd never go along with it. But if you're sure, that's good enough for me."

"You tried to kill me, Race," Dr Quest said softly. "I'm sure."

"What does it say about our lives that you can tell me I'm tied up because a computer program hacked my brain and I believe you?" he shook his head ruefully. "Well, at least life isn't boring. And Quatre did some kind of empathic something in my mind to keep it under control? I probably owe the kid, then," he replied, carefully sidestepping thinking too hard about what he could have done to Benton, _everybody_ , if not for the interference of the Gundams. He didn't have to be a genius scientist to feel a couple of bruises on his arms and shins, and he knew for a fact that not one of his kids would have held him down that hard with a grip that unforgiving.

"I must confess, I didn't realize Quatre's abilities were so extensive," Benton said, looking slyly at Wufei. "I was surprised by the power of what I sensed when he drew me in as well."

Wufei grunted noncommittally. It wasn't the time or the place for a conversation of that sort, particularly when Quatre himself were not there to describe the sentimental aspects of it, and Wufei would not share them, not even with an ally.

Quatre had summoned him scant hours after he had woken from his own encounter with ZERO, not long before the debriefing dinner with the Quests, and what had transpired was for no one but those who had been present.

 

-==OOO==-

 

> "Barton said you wanted to see me," Wufei entered without preamble, closing the door behind him.
> 
> "Yes. Please sit down, Wufei," Quatre said politely. He rose from where he'd been sitting looking through files on his computer – probably work for WEI, if Wufei was to guess. Quatre showed no outward weakness or lasting impact from his ordeal, but he was still slightly pale and he hadn't ventured outside of this one room since waking.
> 
> "Thank you for coming. I know we've got dinner in a little while, and it's my hope the Quests will join us. But there's something I need to ask you about and I think I need to do it soon. Before there are others around."
> 
> Wufei took a seat on the small sofa and Quatre sat next to him. The Chinese agent did not say anything, but simply waited. He had learned that of the pilots, this one was not the ones who needed to be prompted to speak, nor ordered to silence. Quatre would gather his thoughts and begin in his own time.
> 
> "You taught me how to visualize and analyze my feelings," he said after a moment. "How to assess what I was sensing and interpret it." Wufei nodded, so he continued, "I don't remember exactly what Hadji did to me while I was in ZERO, but I have some idea based on what I was feeling when I first woke up here. And…I think something is…different."
> 
> "I have already spoken to Quest," Wufei said, annoyed suddenly that there were three people to whom he might be referring but not one of them had yet earned anything resembling first-name worthiness yet. Still, Quatre was well more than intelligent enough to know which "Quest" he meant. "He gave me a basic debriefing of what he recalls from his meditation. He claims he cut you off from all your connections, isolated you from everything that might link you to yourself."
> 
> "That sounds right," Quatre said slowly. "Because the first thing I remember feeling is nothing, absolute emptiness, not a single bond or emotion except my own. It was so…so very lonely."
> 
> Wufei remembered well his original training sessions with Quatre, and how overwhelming it had been for him to be constantly aware of dozens or hundreds of people around him. But when he had begun to learn to shield, he had ruefully confessed that while it was a relief to be alone in his own heart, it was also lonely there, too, after feeling so connected. It was not something Wufei could imagine, but he knew the difference in himself between being able to trust four other people completely and what he had been before, and it was enough.
> 
> In a rare show of emotion, Wufei closed a hand over Quatre's, reminding them both that they were not alone. He spoke gently, "But that's not what is worrying you now."
> 
> "No, not exactly," Quatre looked down. "The bond with Trowa was fractured at first but it's fine now. And Heero too. Whatever Hadji did to me doesn't seem to have been permanent, because those connections came back almost at once."
> 
> Quatre turned his head and met Wufei's eyes, and inexplicably Wufei's chest contracted. A moment later, worry and uncertainty and a tiny trickle of relief seemed to bloom in his heart. _None of which were his_. His eyes widened as his lightning-quick mind pieced facts together.
> 
> "Quatre, you don't think…"
> 
> "It's the only explanation," he said, catching onto Wufei's thoughts. "Trowa mentioned that when I first woke up I somehow knocked you all back even though I didn't touch you. Now I can sense you and Duo more than ever before, a lot more. It's almost like what I had with Heero, that same level of awareness. And you can't tell me you don't feel this."
> 
> Another lance of emotion, this one a bit smug as well as cautious and happy flashed through Wufei.
> 
> "What Quest did should not have changed your gift," Wufei shook his head. "He does not have the power to awaken your abilities further, not directly."
> 
> "No, but it's possible that what he did allowed me to grow again. You know, when we first started working together, I had recently had an explosion of what I could sense. I don't think this ability grows in a straight line. Maybe all our training together set me up for another leap forward and what Hadji did effectively opened me to new potential…I don't know," he ran a hand through his hair. "It's so hard to explain."
> 
> "But your explanation may be the right one even if your words are uncertain. Quest likened the connections he cut in your mind to a tree's roots, and like a tree, perhaps some of the older wood must be removed in order to make room for new growth," Wufei conceded. "There is no denying that I am clearly experiencing your emotions."
> 
> "And I'm fully shielded right now."
> 
> That was a surprise. Wufei knew that when Quatre shielded fully, even Barton had difficulty discerning his feelings at a distance, though not when in physical contact. Fully shielded from Yuy, though, and even skin-to-skin the Japanese pilot might not sense anything at all from Quatre unless he willed it.
> 
> "And it's not just you," Quatre continued. "I sense everything better, stronger, more intensely. I can focus in more clearly. For example…" he trailed off and closed his eyes. "Four hundred yards, give or take, in that direction," he pointed towards the interior of the colony, "there is a child being taunted by some bullies. There are…six of the bullies, but only one is particularly malicious – the rest are just as afraid of that one as the target. But the target isn't ashamed and seems to be fighting back."
> 
> He opened his eyes. "If I focus on it hard enough, I think I could almost give you the blow-by-blow of their words, not because I can hear them speaking, but because I can read them that clearly."
> 
> "Whereas when we first trained together, you would have sensed 'conflict' in the general area, but not the direction, nor could you have isolated the specific causes with that level of precision at this distance without a great deal of interference from everyone in between and around them," Wufei said, considering.
> 
> "Exactly."
> 
> "But now I do not feel anything from you except perhaps a general awareness. Now that I know what I am feeling, I suppose I would describe it as Yuy did, a sense of connectedness to you."
> 
> "I reinforced my shields, so I'm glad it worked," Quatre nodded, "and I think that we can safely say whatever I had with just Heero before has now grown to you and Duo. And what I had with Heero is deeper. With Trowa," he blushed but rushed on, "we've always been impossibly close so I don't know if we would recognize even more than that. We haven't exactly tested it yet."
> 
> "You should," Wufei said. "Try to project to Trowa now, something subtle that he might have missed before. We'll see if he responds."
> 
> "Negative or positive?"
> 
> "Negative, to ensure it works." He watched Quatre's eyes go out of focus for a moment. When they'd first been exploring the extent of Quatre's empathy, they had learned that negative emotions of fear or pain or anger tended to be more clearly read through their bond.
> 
> There was a long moment and then the door burst open. Trowa stormed in, Heero at his heels, Duo not far behind.
> 
> "What the hell are you doing?" Trowa barely managed not to roar, but he could not keep himself from pulling Quatre up from the couch and holding him away from Wufei protectively.
> 
> "No, it's…oh Allah," Quatre sighed, knocking his forehead against his lover's shoulder in exasperation. Almost at once, Trowa calmed completely as contact with Quatre reassured him.
> 
> "Explain. Now." Heero's face was twisted in anger, too.
> 
> "Yeah. How come I…maybe I just had one too many of those nasty ration bars yesterday, but I'd swear…" Duo looked uncertainly on.
> 
> "It was an experiment," Quatre explained quickly. "I'd noticed that my empathy seems to be different, and Wufei was helping me test it. He asked me to project something negative while fully shielded."
> 
> "I'd say it works," Trowa answered. "Wait, fully shielded?"
> 
> "What did you experience?" Wufei asked, having stood also and shut the door behind the others before returning to the group.
> 
> "A blast of guilt and fear, specifically fear of you," Trowa turned to him. "It was extremely clear."
> 
> "It was clear to me as well," Heero said. "Normally impressions from Quatre are only that clear when we are in physical contact or he is not shielded at all."
> 
> "Okay, am I not nuts then?" Duo asked. "Because I felt something too, something that wasn't me. It was like when we, you know…like in the desert."
> 
> The two of them quickly detailed their suspicions about the nature of Quatre's empathy, now much advanced and deepened. Mid-way through the explanation, Quatre apologized sheepishly.
> 
> "By the way, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to worry anybody. I wasn't even projecting that hard, really. It should only have been enough for Trowa to pick up on, and then only enough to make him wonder – it wouldn't have caused a riot a week ago for me to project only that much."
> 
> "You're going to have to learn to direct it more carefully," Heero said. "If you wish for only one of us to receive when you are projecting, you're going to have to master how you send that emotion. Or we will all very quickly be receiving mixed signals."
> 
> "You may also need to reinforce your shields or learn to make them more powerful," Wufei added. "Though you are not experiencing anything outside of the four of us?"
> 
> Quatre shook his head.
> 
> "Then perhaps it is simply your connection to us that is the exception."
> 
> "Yes, but," Quatre worried his teeth at the corner of his mouth for a moment before continuing, "the precision with which I can sense other people is a lot more…open. I think, if I tried hard enough, I could project into somebody else, somebody not one of you with whom I have an established bond."
> 
> "It's grown that much?" Trowa asked.
> 
> "Yes. At least."
> 
> "We will all have to work with it, then," Heero said decisively. "This could be a very great advantage in a battle for all of us. And the ability to project may also assist us in protecting ourselves or others. But that will all take time."
> 
> "Yeah, and it's almost dinner time anyway," Duo pointed out. Then he poked Quatre in the shoulder. "I gotta say, Cat, it's a little distracting having this thing in my head now."
> 
> "Duo, I never meant to cause you anything like this. I'm so…"
> 
> "Don't." Heero's voice cut darkly through his contrite words. "Quatre, do not _ever_ apologize for your gift. It has saved us many times in many ways. And Duo," he turned harshly to the braided pilot, "if you ever denigrate the value of the bond you now share with him again, I will personally make you regret it. Do not insult something like this."
> 
> "Geez," Duo shook his head, rolling his eyes. "I was just gonna say that I could do with some distracting now and then. But seriously," and he met Quatre's eyes fully, "it's okay. It's actually kinda nice, you know? I know we don't want to get all touchy-feely, but what the five of us share, what happens when you bring us together, Cat, I think we all live for that sometimes. So if I get a little of it all the time, that's okay. Even if Mr Protective over there can't take a joke about it."
> 
> "It is dishonorable to speak so poorly of something that has given us so much, Maxwell," Wufei pointed out. But he sighed. "We're all on edge. Winner, lock down your shields as best you can. Everyone else, manage your emotions. This is not the time for us to test this, but after dinner and the briefing we will see if we can explore the particulars of our…new arrangement."
> 
> "It's actually kinda cool," Duo commented as they made their way to the dining room.
> 
> "For me, too," Quatre said shyly. Four faces turned to him mid-stride and he smiled. "You're all here," he held his heart, right where their linked tattoos were imprinted on his skin, "and I'm with all of you. I'm part of you like you've always been a part of me. Now what's mine is yours, too."
> 
> Trowa took his hand and held it warmly. "What's mine has always been yours as well."
> 
> Duo, Wufei, and Heero refrained from saying anything, but in that moment Quatre could sense it all. He could sense the closeness, the actual happiness in Duo and Wufei from that constant knowledge that they were not alone in the world. He could sense the startlement but also the gratitude from Heero that their bond was deeper now, safer and stronger. And of course, he could sense Trowa's unbridled love. None of the other three voiced it, but their sentiments were the same as Trowa's. What they had, they gave. No secrets, no boundaries, not anymore. Not where it mattered. What belonged to one belonged to them all. Especially one another.

 

-==OOO==-

 

A beeping from his Preventers communications device drew Wufei back to the present. Quest and Bannon were still deep in discussion, although most of it appeared to be reassurance on Quest's part that he would ensure Bannon caused no harm to anyone. Flipping open the screen, Wufei felt himself go rigid with some combination of fury and fear at the information displayed there. He read the briefing twice before snapping the device closed.

"Quest, we have to gather the others. Something has happened."

"What is it?" the doctor asked, rising from his chair.

"Surd has attacked a Preventers outpost in a mobile suit."

" _What?!_ " Race almost knocked himself off his chair he stood up so quickly, his bound hands unbalancing him dangerously. Dr Quest instinctively caught and supported him.

"You heard me. Bannon, I'm going to have to confine you to quarters so we can address this. Come with me." He strode from the office further down one of the hallways, opening at the end a small bedroom. It had its own attached bathroom and was as spartanly but comfortably furnished as everything else.

"So this is my cell?"

"I'm sorry," and Wufei meant it. "It is dishonorable to treat you this way, but in truth we do not have the time to do anything else. And I know you will agree that you are better served here than risking the safety of your family."

"Yeah, I know." Race lifted his chin and squared his shoulders. "Just keep me in the loop, okay? If there's anything I can do to help, I will."

"Agreed." Wufei did not allow any amount of guilt into his inflection or his expression as he let Bannon pass him into the room and locked the door behind him. There would be time for guilt later.

For a moment he paused, frustrated that the other pilots and Quests did not have their interlinked comms on their persons (though likely at least Yuy and Barton could be raised that way). Then he almost smiled, remembering. Even as he strode back down the hallway, Benton Quest in his wake, his mind reached outward. His thoughts were clear enough that he knew their intent would be heard.

_Quatre, summon everyone. We have an emergency._

There was a moment of surprise and concern that filtered through his heart and the Quatre-ness of his feelings grew stronger, and then a _pull_ that was so powerful even Wufei sped up his steps towards the dining room washed through him. As he had learned in the last day, there was a difference when he knew Quatre was listening, and with the empath more acutely sensitive than ever, it took very little to get his attention. Suddenly wondering, Wufei glanced to his side but he did not note any difference in Dr Quest's motions, suggesting the call went no farther than the pilots themselves.

As it should be. Their bond was only for them, after all.


	27. Developments

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not totally happy with where this one ends, so I'm going to probably put up the next one tomorrow.
> 
> Enjoy!

Heero moved through the crowd as though he were smoke passing by. He had long ago learned the skill of drawing his shoulders in, tucking his chin down, and making himself seem small and weak. That, along with an air of nothing-to-see-here was enough to turn most people's eyes away. Combine it with the ability to move quickly, silently, and with a knack for staying just outside people's line of sight, and he was practically invisible.

He could see Jessie ahead of him, her head down and her hands jammed in her pockets as she wandered L2's streets. He wouldn't expect her to know he was there, since she hadn't looked up even once and probably didn't expect to be followed. So he was inordinately pleased when she ducked around a sudden corner almost too casually. Still, he wouldn't be outdone. But this might give her something to divert her thoughts.

For the next few blocks, Heero played a simple game of cat-and-mouse with Jessie, never coming closer than half a block, and never letting her out of his sight for more than six seconds. He had to give her credit – she was sharp. She knew the best measures for avoiding a confrontation with someone on her tail, she played by all the right rules except in moments where conventional wisdom was a little too conservative, and she did it all without telegraphing to anyone not trained to see that she was doing anything out of the ordinary.

But when her movements took on a slightly panicked tone, Heero relented. He didn't really want to scare her, after all. He let her duck around a corner where he figured she would be readying herself for a confrontation and followed her openly, making no effort to hide.

Still, he was even more pleased by the elbow he had to block before she recognized him.

"Heero!" she hissed. "What are you doing here?" Then, "Wait, _you_ were the one following me?"

He nodded and released her arm.

"Why?"

"The situation makes it too dangerous for anyone to go off alone," he answered monotonously.

"Did Dr Quest send you?" she asked suspiciously.

"No."

"Oh." She leaned back, ran a hand through her hair, and looked at him quizzically. "Are you going to try to psychoanalyze me or something? Try to make me feel better?"

"No." As that seemed not enough to say, he elaborated, "How you choose to deal with your emotions is up to you. You've proven you don't need to be lectured or treated like a child. But even if you need to handle this on your own, it doesn't mean you have to be by yourself to do it."

"Yeah, that's probably true," she answered. "I just didn't want pity. I didn't want them to look at me like I should be hugged and held and told it would be okay. I want to…I don't even know," she huffed. "But not that."

"Hn."

That was hardly an answer, but Jessie nodded and moved back out to the sidewalk, Heero trailing beside her, walking aimlessly. They passed several blocks in silence.

"Why you?" she asked suddenly. "I get just about anybody else. But why did _you_ come after me?"

Heero paused a moment before he answered. He didn't particularly like the idea of explaining any of his real motivations. How did he express the fact that he understood what it was to lose a parent, and that nobody should have to face that alone, even if in her case it was probably temporary? Or how did he describe his almost instinctive defense of strong-willed people brought low by circumstances beyond their control? And forget mentioning the slight tremor of worry that leaked into him from Quatre; he didn't like it when Quatre worried, and if there was something he could do about it, he would. Even if he admitted to either of the first two, he would never confess the third.

"It doesn't matter," he settled on.

She seemed to accept that and continued walking. But a moment later she stopped and whirled to face him head-on.

"Are you just gonna follow me and not say anything at all?" she demanded.

"Probably." What else could he do? He really didn't know any ways of coping with strong emotions other than his own – and he had Quatre for that.

The thought seemed to open the bond more strongly and he could feel Quatre listening for him, and probably listening to Jessie, too. A moment later, he was touched by a feeling he could only begin to describe as approving. Quatre sent him patience and trust, and Heero knew then that he was doing exactly what Jessie needed for now. Later, probably, Quatre or one of the Quests would do the hard work to help her open up. For now, apparently Quatre believed silence was precisely what would benefit her the most.

So he started walking again, letting her catch up to him, and stayed near and quiet. If she spoke, he answered her. But he didn't ask her for anything and didn't try to tell her anything, and slowly she seemed to relax.

Until Heero stopped suddenly, hand closing on his chest as he nearly thrummed with the need to get back to Quatre right that instant. A moment later, one of the giant news display screens affixed to a nearby building lit up with an alert.

" _Attention, please. We apologize for this interruption to bring you an emergency bulletin. For the first time since the end of the wars, a mobile suit has been sighted in space combat. The images you are witnessing are of low quality, but we are assured that what they depict is nothing less than a mobile suit attacking a Preventers outpost near L3. The Earth Sphere United Nation has not yet released a statement on whether this is an isolated incident, but we will inform you as soon as any information becomes available. For now, we recommend you remain calm and do not attempt to interfere in any way."_

" _Kuso_!" Heero swore. His eyes were dark and focused as he turned to Jessie. "Come on. We have to get back _now_."

She swallowed a lump of sudden fear in her throat, nodded, and raced after him as they sprinted back towards the apartment.

 

-==OOO==-

 

Without the cheerful light of the lanterns and the spread of food, the dining room table looked barren. And there was no denying the discomfort in the room above and beyond the palpable concern over the newest events. The Quests sat together, deliberately not looking at the empty chair next to Jessie where Race should have been sitting. Hadji and Duo carefully avoided one another as well, though there was no open animosity in the air – more a sense of resigned frustration and struggle.

Wufei projected an image in the center of the table, just as he had at Rock Island seemingly forever ago, as he spoke.

"Three hours ago, a Preventers outpost reported sighting a blip on their sensors. Within minutes they activated a distress call indicating a violent attack that could not be easily repelled. The nearest Preventers base scrambled their best, capturing this image on approach." He gestured to the projection.

The image was not high quality, but there was no denying that the small station near to the L3 cluster was under attack by something shaped vaguely like a mobile suit. The damage to the base was obvious.

"Using Horus, we were able to get a better view of the suit," Quatre put in as Wufei pulled up a different image.

The mobile suit was massive. It would have stood easily half-again as tall as Epyon, and wider as well for it was built proportionally. The suit itself was a dark grey, illuminated by running lights that alternated a dull white and a deep red. It had similar armaments to Heavyarms in that it seemed primarily geared towards firepower rather than hand-to-hand weaponry. Its arms were both double-barreled laser gatling-guns, and the shoulders and chest were arrayed with missile launchers. The suit was bulky, not built for speed and precision so much as an overwhelming show of force from a fixed point.

But perhaps the most disturbing feature of the suit was its head. Unlike the Gundams, which had all been built with the vaguely samurai-helmet shape to the heads, this head had been built as though it were sculpted of marble. The mobile suit may have looked like a weapon, but its crowning feature was the face molded in a smug smirk. It was an exact replica of Jeremiah Surd's face as a young man, complete with molded black hair falling like a waterfall from a severe widow's peak on the forehead. The eyes were brightly lit and red, making the whole suit seem far more personal and therefore frightening as it launched its attack.

"He did it," Jonny felt his mouth go dry. "He built himself a body."

"Apparently," Wufei agreed. "The Preventers outpost was almost totally destroyed with very few survivors. The suit disappeared, probably employing similar technology to Deathscythe's Hyper Jammer. Shortly thereafter, a demand was received by the ESUN."

He switched the projection to an image of what appeared to be a long list of demands. The threat for failure to comply was explicit – "Destruction shall be visited upon you" – though no reference to the attack on the Preventers was made. Along with the list were several classified documents, examples that the government itself has been infiltrated and compromised and that no attempt to counteract the hostile force would go unnoticed.

"Good thing for us our security was designed not only by the best hacker ever to crack a system, but also by two minds enhanced by ZERO itself," Trowa noted. "That's how we could access this without Surd knowing."

"Nice job, team," Duo said, trying to lift the mood a little. "We'd be sunk if Hee-chan and Kitty-Cat weren't crazy good at this stuff. Not that I'm shabby, either, of course."

"Additional information suggests that, while this is certainly the work of Jeremiah Surd, Ezekiel Rage is also a factor in the threat," Wufei continued smoothly. "Some of the secured materials from his previous base were stolen, including several completed missiles that had been waiting to be decommissioned at that specific Preventers outpost."

"So we actually have two different terrorists out there to thwart," Hadji said. "Surd, who can use ZERO to control practically any system he wants, and Rage who is more likely to simply destroy life with whatever weapons he can find."

"Precisely. We must act against both threats." Wufei crossed his arms.

"And Preventers is counting on us," Quatre spoke slowly. "They just don't have the resources to handle this, or the experience, and any move they make will be noticed. Only because we are largely outside the Preventers hierarchy and order proper can we move in relative secrecy. That, and Horus, are our two biggest advantages."

"You've got one more," Jessie spoke up suddenly. As all eyes turned to her, she leaned forward. "Both times I met Rage in his lair, he called me 'Karla.' That's his daughter's name, right?" Heero nodded and she continued. "We know he's crazy, but apparently he's crazy enough to think I'm her, at least for a minute or two. We can potentially use that to throw him off-balance, cause him to pause at a critical moment."

"It's a good idea, but dangerous," Dr Quest put in. "You'd be putting yourself at risk."

"And if I don't how many people will die?" she returned. "I can handle it."

"This is a Level Zero mission," Heero said. "And in this case, Operation Meteor principles are necessary. 'None shall see a Gundam and live.' Surd and Rage both have to die, and anyone who is helping them. This isn't a small group with a grudge and one bomb. This risks everything."

"Agreed." Wufei crossed his arms. "We eliminate them. Completely. We're beyond arresting them now."

"You're just going to step outside the law?" Benton was surprised.

" _We_ were the terrorists once," Duo said coldly. "We know what it does to the peace. We have no problem taking down every single person willing to kill the innocent."

There was a long, serious silence, but not one of the Quests could find words to contradict them. Finally someone broke the quiet.

"So what are we going to do about that thing?" Jonny wanted to know, gesturing to where the demands list had been again replaced with Surd's mobile suit on the screen.

"I'm not sure yet," Quatre admitted. "The suits the Maganacs have can't go up against it – they're just not built for that level of combat and he'll slice them to pieces. I never thought I'd say this, but what we really need is a Gundam."

"But they were all destroyed," Trowa added.

"That's not entirely true." Wufei looked up coolly as everyone in the room turned to him. "The Preventers still have the Tallgeese, of course, but Noin won't let anybody pilot it but her with Zechs away at the Mars project. But that isn't what I meant."

Heero stood up fast, his eyes widening. "I thought it wasn't salvageable."

"It's taken a fair amount of time," Wufei conceded. "But it's been a good training tool for recruits as well as mechanics. And I believe we have been keeping it for this very reason."

"What are you talking about?" Jonny asked.

"Wing Zero," Quatre breathed. "Wing Zero is the only one we didn't detonate. You've had it all this time?" he looked accusingly at Wufei.

"I was under orders not to let anyone know," he shrugged. "Besides, you could have figured it out if you'd tried. It isn't my fault you were so caught up in putting the wars behind you that you forgot to account for all five Gundams properly. Preventers confiscated all the leftover military technology after the Barton incident and that included what remained of the suit after Yuy's little stunt."

"So…you're telling us Wing Zero is in this fight? That's great!" Duo cheered, his bright laugh lightening the room's atmosphere considerably. "No problem, then!" He elbowed Wufei playfully. "Next time let us in on the secret though, Wu-dude."

"Can Wing Zero really handle the Surd suit?" Dr Quest spoke up. He expected a prompt answer and was surprised when no one spoke. Trowa, Duo, and Wufei all were watching a silent exchange between Heero and Quatre.

"Um, guys?" Jessie asked after a few moments of that unbroken quiet.

"Hang on. They're doing that weird thing they do," Duo commented in an undertone. Trowa sighed.

"It's not weird. They're just thinking together."

Several more moments passed as the two seemed to communicate without even changing their facial expressions. It was oddly intense, and when they broke of it, it was as though a string had snapped throughout the room.

"Trust me," Heero said simply, sitting back down.

"I…you know I do, but…" Quatre looked almost defeated and closed his eyes slowly, opening them as though they were heavy. "All right. I see your point. We'll do things your way."

"If I may ask, how in the world did the two of you cogitate a plan without even so much as quirking your eyebrows?" Hadji was curious. "Is it to do with Quatre's empathy?"

"Not exactly," Quatre said. "Although it helps. Heero and I have been able to do that since before the end of the wars. I think some of it was ZERO. The system changed our brainwave patterns a little when it comes to strategic and tactical thinking, so we literally were more on the same wavelength after exposure to it, moreso than the others because we used it more. But mainly I think it's because we know each other so well. The empathy just allows us to do it faster."

"So what is the plan from the inside?" Trowa's eyes were warm even though his face was set and serious.

"You're not going to like it," Heero answered him.

"That hardly matters," Wufei sniffed. Heero shrugged at him in return and looked to Quatre.

"There are three different adversaries," he started to say.

"Three?" Jessie asked.

"Surd's mobile suit, Ezekiel Rage, and Surd himself. It's highly unlikely a tetraplegic is actually inside that mobile suit. It would be as easy to control remotely as to control from inside with the ZERO System. So we have to assume his real base is elsewhere."

Quatre stood and started to pace while he spoke.

"Surd himself is the more dangerous of the two of them, but we can't forget about Rage or underestimate him. If the two of them are still working in tandem, we have to be prepared for a reaction from either when we target them. And if Rage still has any followers, which he probably does since all that weaponry went missing, it won't be long before he regroups enough to use whatever he can."

"So we attack all three simultaneously," Duo nodded, following his thinking. "Which means splitting up."

"Exactly. The Tallgeese and Wing Zero can handle the Surd suit, and two other teams will have to chase down Rage and Surd themselves wherever they are. We can have the Maganacs standing by to intercept any attacks either of them launch from their bases, since they aren't in the Preventers system either and therefore ZERO will not be able to predict their actions."

"So who is going where?" Jonny asked. "And can we help?"

"I think you'll have to," Quatre answered. "There's just too much at stake and too much to do for the five of us alone. And we genuinely cannot count on any Preventers assistance. They are totally compromised by ZERO's presence in their systems."

"Quatre," Heero huffed, "just get to it."

"All right," he turned and faced the table fully, unconsciously throwing back his shoulders and taking command of the room as he would a board meeting. "The first team will be comprised of Wufei, Jonny, and Dr Quest. You'll be going after Surd's actual base. He is the greatest threat, so he's yours, Wufei. And he's using ZERO, so Dr Quest may be able to assist. Jonny, you'll back them up as needed.

"The second team will be Trowa, Duo, Hadji and Jessie. You'll go after Ezekiel Rage. Between Trowa and Duo you'll be able to neutralize or destroy any weaponry he's acquired, and you can probably handle his remaining followers. Hadji, you are the person most likely to be able to help Jessie with her plan to confuse Rage. You went into my mind – you might be able to project the image of Jessie as Karla and gain an advantage that way.

"In the meantime, Heero will take the Tallgeese against the Surd suit and try to neutralize it."

"But what about you?" Benton asked.

Quatre took a deep breath before answering. "I'll be in Wing Zero. I'll fight Surd's suit if I have to, but the real plan is to plug me into our original ZERO System and fight him on that level instead. If Surd has changed his ZERO to give him access to computerized systems throughout the Earth Sphere, maybe I can slow him down or lock him out. It will also give me the best strategic position to back up any of the other teams, relay messages, and warn any of you if the situation changes."

"But does that not mean you will be putting yourself once again into the ZERO System?" Hadji asked. "How can you do this after what it has already done?"

"Wing Zero's system is very different from Surd's," Quatre answered slowly. "And I already know I can handle it."

"It's actually our team that will be in the most danger," Wufei commented lightly, and the quirk of Quatre's eye was the only indication that the Arab had noted his deliberate change of subject. "We have no way of knowing what resources Surd may have at his disposal." He considered making a comment about how it would have been helpful to include Race Bannon, but it was foolish. Even if they did bring him along, there was no guarantee he would be safe to trust at their backs, especially where Surd could take advantage of the reprograming he had done. But to say as much would be to admit weakness unnecessarily.

"We'll do as much as we can to find out what Surd has," Quatre said, "but you're right that there's no guarantee. I could send Rashid or Auda with you if you want."

"No. If we cannot handle him on our own we do not deserve the assistance," Wufei said sharply, glaring daggers at where Dr Quest and Jonny had both started to nod. "This is something we should be able to accomplish. We will not fail."

"It will take several hours to get the Tallgeese and Wing Zero here," Heero said, standing. "We attack as soon as the suits are ready. Surd gave a deadline of 24 hours when he threatened the ESUN, so we will have enough time to act before their response is expected. Unless Rage is a great fool, he too will wait. But we will not."

"So just one question," Duo put in. He turned to Heero with a slightly mad smile. "How are you gonna talk Noin into letting you pilot Zech's baby?"

At this Heero smiled a mad smile of his own in return. "I won't. I'm just going to take it."


	28. Gathering Forces

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I said I'd put this up days ago and then...there was stuff. So two tonight instead!
> 
> Enjoy!

"I need to talk to you."

That was all the warning Quatre got before Duo had grabbed his arm and yanked, dragging him out of the room mere moments after the group had split up to prepare for the mission. Quatre sent a reassuring wisp of emotion to the other pilots; Quatre sensed that whatever Duo wanted was distinct from the upcoming mission, at least in part, and was calling on him as a friend and not a tactician.

Duo tugged as Quatre's thoughts slowed him, continuing insistently out of the apartment and down to the hangar. Once there, though, he released Quatre only to sneak behind several pallets of materials, hiding from the Maganacs and Sweepers in the area. Quatre followed without question – he didn't need to be an empath to know that whatever Duo wanted he intended to keep private.

Around behind several stacks of crates they came out in a little maintenance alcove, with enough room to sit knee-to-knee, and Duo settled himself comfortably. Quatre sat and waited.

"Hey, are you really okay about going back into Wing Zero and, well ZERO?" Duo asked, eyes peering at his friend.

"It's not my first choice, no," Quatre answered. He knew perfectly well that Duo was avoiding whatever was on his mind, but he also knew a delay would help him feel more comfortable. "But Heero's right that we have a better strategic advantage with me in ZERO again like at the end of the Eve wars."

"Yeah, but, Kitty-Cat..." Duo looked at him with real concern, "we don't want to lose you to it again."

"I know." He let out a breath. "I don't want to lose me either. And I don't think I will. Our ZERO is different from Surd's. And the only emotions that will be anywhere near me will be Heero's. Plus you and Wufei and Trowa, of course, through the bond. I think that will keep me steady."

"I'm not gonna tell you how to do what you do, but just tell me you've got a plan."

"A plan?"

"Yeah! Don't play dumb with me, Cat. I know you too well for that. You and Heero did your staring thing and you spun the Quests a good setup, but there's something you didn't say. Wufei saw it, too, but he didn't wanna make you spill it 'cause he wants to figure it out for himself or else not admit that he can't. But I don't care if you know I can't outthink you. So whatcha got cooking in that brain of yours?" he leaned forward with a knowing smirk.

Quatre looked affronted for just a second or two before the mask slipped and he smiled sheepishly at his friend. "You are sometimes too observant for your own good."

"You're not gonna tell me, are you?"

"No."

"And I bet you've got a dozen reasons and they all have to do with tactics and anticipating what we'll do and how that will change if I know your plan?"

"Something like that." Quatre nodded, feeling his shoulders ease as he could clearly feel Duo accepting his answer and trusting him with it.

"Well, if anybody's gonna screw up one of your plans, it isn't gonna be me, so I won't ask any more. Just...don't forget that we're here, okay?" and there was real vulnerability in the question as Duo looked at him through his bangs.

"Never, Duo," Quatre said sincerely. "How could I? You're right here." He put a hand over his heart and a tendril of their connection brightened in Duo's heart in answer. It was enough to jolt him into remembering the reason he'd pulled Quatre aside originally.

"So, to switch gears, you probably know all of what's bugging me," Duo began.

"No, not really." At the frown, Quatre added, "Just because I can read your emotions more clearly now doesn't mean I'm any more willing to pry. And besides, I can tell what you're feeling, but I don't know why. I can't read your mind, Duo. Not more than usual," and he grinned.

"Too bad. It's party-party in there sometimes," he smirked. Then his face fell a little and he said more seriously, "It's a good thing you can feel it, though. If you couldn't, I might say something stupid to you and you wouldn't know what I meant by it."

"What did you say, and to whom?" Quatre asked gently.

"I got mad at Hadji. I wasn't really mad, you know. I just didn't know how to talk to him. He was going on about what he did to you and how it was a betrayal or something and I just lost it." Duo sighed heavily.

"You…" Quatre's eyes glazed momentarily, "it seems like you felt guilty about something. And ashamed."

"Got it in one, no surprise. If saving you from ZERO and enhancing your empathy is a bad thing, what does that mean for everything else I've done?" he said bitterly. "I know the guy didn't mean to sound judgmental or something, but come on. How can he not be?"

"I don't know Hadji the way I know you," the blond considered, "but what I do know suggests he wouldn't think less of you. He measures himself by his own standards. I don't think he would apply them to us."

"Well, maybe he should!"

"What makes you say that?"

"'Cause they're a hell of a lot better than mine!" Duo exclaimed. "In his world, it's easy and simple and black-and-white and there are good guys and bad guys and you can always do the right thing in the right way. And my life is all grey. Hell, I _invented_ grey. We get the job done, and we go home, and whatever we had to do is only good or bad if we succeeded or failed, you know? He gets to decide. We just have to survive."

Quatre was quiet, listening to Duo rant, while carefully letting their bond inform him. When Duo seemed to run out of words, he spoke slowly, thoughtfully.

"You know, you and Hadji have a lot in common."

"We have _nothing_ in common," Duo practically sneered. "He's a lucky guy who never had to make the hard choices and got everything handed to him. And I'm a street rat from L2."

"Hadji was a street rat, too, on Earth," Quatre pointed out. "And that's why you're so mad."

Duo raised an eyebrow and waited.

"You're hurt, Duo. Hurt that Hadji was found and adopted by the Quests. Hurt that he got the life you wanted and never got for yourself. Hurt that he never had to learn what it felt like to kill someone to survive. Hurt that his life could have been yours and isn't."

He locked eyes with Duo, who was suddenly very still.

"You've always been okay with people not having to live in our grey world before because you didn't want someone to have to go through what you'd experienced. This is the opposite of that – you're faced with someone who could have gone through it and avoided it. Resenting that is perfectly normal, in fact. In a way, you and Hadji are exactly alike. You both found ways to survive alone in a world that didn't care if you lived or died. You lost people you loved and needed."

Duo looked away, but Quatre waited until he raised his head again before continuing.

"You want Hadji to have the chance you never had at a life you never got, but you're also angry that it happened to him when you want it to have been you. And that's okay. It's not your fault or his that you stayed a street rat on L2 and he wound up a Quest. It's nobody's fault that you became Shinigami and Hadji didn't. He can't understand that part of you and you can't understand that part of him. You're too alike for it to feel okay to you that you're different."

"You…might be on to something, Cat," Duo said finally. He was met with a sad smile.

"I can't say I'm glad you became a Gundam pilot and not a Quest, because I wouldn't wish it on anybody. But if you hadn't been Shinigami, you wouldn't have become Zero Two. And if you hadn't been Zero Two, this never would have happened to either of us."

And Quatre bumped their knees together, letting down his shielding and offering Duo the loyalty and trust and openness of his heart. He put into that feeling how grateful he was for Duo's friendship, how much their shared laughter meant to him.

Duo closed his eyes, his face oddly serene, and when he looked up again he was much less tense.

"It doesn't really make up for the wars," he said, his smile returning slowly even though the sadness behind the words was obvious to them both, "but yeah. He doesn't have this. He can keep the mansion and everything. If I really want that, I'll just borrow yours!"

"Anytime, Duo."

"So I should probably go say something to him, since he'll be on my team for this whole thing," he added. "Not tell him all this stuff, but, you know, something. I gotta work with the guy, and we might as well not be all weird and awkward."

"Yes, please," Quatre answered with a quirk of humor. "Otherwise Trowa will spend the whole mission having to deal with you both."

"And we wouldn't want that!" Duo laughed. Then he reached forward and ruffled Quatre's hair. "Thanks, Kitty-Cat. You know I hate being wrong, but you're the exception. You can tell me I'm full of it anytime. Just don't let on to Heero."

Quatre grinned both at the joke and at the warmth in Duo's heart. Duo was often very straightforward with his own emotions, and being shown that his antagonism towards Hadji was rooted in the same fears that consumed all the ex-pilots had actually comforted him. It allowed him to move Hadji from the metal category of "entitled and stupidly ignorant" to "can't help being innocent" which he, like all of them, could handle. They still fought so others wouldn't have to. Hadji was just one more to be preserved.

Duo was also not one to wait, so he bounced to his feet, shot Quatre a final wink, and dashed off, leaving his friend to whatever else he had to accomplish. But he hadn't really left, after all – he could still feel the lingering tether of Quatre's friendship like a second heartbeat. With that in his mind, how could he not feel okay enough to face up to his own mistake?

He found Hadji in the common area, looking at a laptop.

"Hey."

Hadji nodded at him politely.

"Look, I just wanted to say I was sorry. I was out of line."

Hadji's eyebrows rose almost into his turban and he cleared his throat. "It is I who should apologize. I never meant to imply that the means you undertook to accomplish all you have won for peace was not work intended for good. Your choices are your own and I should not demean them, even unintentionally. Please forgive me for projecting my own concerns onto you."

Duo huffed a laugh. "Well, that was nicer than what I was gonna say. I just wanted to tell you that I shouldn't have yelled at you. I was mad at the wrong person for the wrong reasons. What you just said, though…thanks." He turned away. "That's nice to hear."

"As Jonny would say, 'are we okay?'" Hadji wanted to know.

"Yeah," Duo turned back. "I'm going to spend all my time being mad at Rage now. Which sounds funny, when you say it. Mad at Rage. Anyway," he grinned, "we're good. You got your thing and I've got mine. And I'm gonna enjoy handing that crazy bastard a little payback for what he did to my bud Cat, not to mention Red. Glad to have you along to back us up, Tubs."

Hadji smiled in return. "I suppose there is nothing I can do to dissuade you from that ridiculous nickname?"

"Hey, Wuf-Wuf has had _years_ of me doing that and it hasn't stopped me yet. And he's a lot scarier than you. No offense," he added as an afterthought.

"None taken, I assure you. To either, in fact."

"You're alright, Tubs," Duo nodded. "As soon as we have a plan, we'll get you up to speed. See you for the briefing."

And he set out to start a check of his equipment and to bug somebody into figuring out dinner with a lighter heart. Duo may not have had Quatre's space heart, but he felt pretty sure Hadji was as relieved as he was. Which was good – they were going to need each other soon enough.

 

-==OOO==-

 

Jonny clicked through the last set of images from Horus before looking up.

"I gotta say," he remarked, "that system is pretty useful!"

"Just imagine how much use it would be to our opponents," his father replied tightly. "It's a good thing Quatre has it so well protected."

Jonny noted the stress in his father's voice and assessed him more carefully. Always put together, his father showed no more outward distress than he would on any other adventure, his clothing slightly rumpled yet largely clean, his hair and beard still neatly combed. (Dr Quest insisted that even megalomaniacs attempting world domination did not warrant untidiness.) But his shoulders were slumped and his eyes were deep-set with guilt.

Jonny wanted to say something, but he didn't know what. For close to two hours he and his father had shared only a few words, and all of those relevant to their task. Quatre had provided them with everything even remotely helpful from Horus, starting with multi-angle views of the Preventers attack against Surd's people on the half-completed colony and backtracking any and all transports to and from the colony and where they originated and went. Before Surd's mobile suit debut, Wufei had received confirmation of a successful Preventers operation apprehending most of Surd's people on that site, but he and Julia had not been not among them. Jonny and Dr Quest had been pouring through the massive data to try to figure out where they might be hiding and what surprises their location might hold.

At the start of their search Wufei and Trowa had been assisting, but both had left for other things. Wufei, at least, had decided to go with Heero to retrieve the mobile suits rather than let him go alone. This also allowed Wufei to make a report in person, which would protect their plans from Surd but also keep Preventers informed. As for Trowa, Jonny had no idea where he'd gone – he had simply left.

Dr Quest had failed to notice the changes around him, or so it seemed. He appeared, Jonny realized with a start, strangely defeated. Despondent, even. He pushed the screen before him aside and regarded his father.

"Dad, you know everything's going to be okay, right?"

"No, I don't know that, Jonny," he answered in a low voice. He looked up, meeting his son's eyes sadly. "I just can't forgive myself. The system I designed is being used to hold the whole of the human race hostage by Jeremiah Surd. It has wrought unimaginable damage to Race's mind, not to mention what it could have done to you and Quatre and Heero."

"You didn't intend for any of that to happen, though," Jonny protested. "And we're going to fix all of it. We're going to beat Surd. You'll see. And we'll help Race. We'll make everything right again."

"I appreciate your optimism," Benton smiled wearily.

"It's not that!" Jonny frowned. "I just don't think anything else is possible. Look, we've done some crazy stuff before, but we've never given up. Surd hasn't beaten us yet."

"He also never had so much power before."

"And we never had friends like this to help before!" Jonny got to his feet, hands on his hips, and glared at Benton, looking more like his mother than he ever could have imagined. "Maybe some of this is your fault, but so what? Some of it is because Preventers never managed to catch and hold Surd. Some of it is because of what Quatre did to enhance ZERO when he went inside it. Some of it is just bad luck. And none of that matters."

"Jonny, I…" he began, but his son didn't pause.

"Every time we've come up against something tough, you've always talked about the greater good and about sacrifice for the sake of others and never giving up. And I believe you. Hadji believes you. Jessie believes you. Race believes you. And we're not going to let anything stop us. Surd's got nothing on us this time, dad. Quatre's already proved it."

"Proved what?"

"That no computer, even ZERO, can beat the human heart. And Surd doesn't have a heart. He doesn't stand a chance!"

Jonny felt the fire of emotion go out of him as his father stood up and faced him. He was surprised to see tears in those wise eyes as he was pulled into a hug.

"You're right, Jonny. Surd is outclassed this time, and he won't ever see us coming. It's not blind optimism. When this is over, Surd and ZERO will not be walking away because we'll never let that happen, all of us together." He squeezed Jonny tightly. "Thank you."

"Glad to hear it!" Jonny grinned. "So let's find out where that snake is hiding so we can drop a hammer on his head!"

"No dropping hammers," his father laughed, releasing him and turning back to the table strewn with computers, images, and virtual screens. "It's just as well I'm going along with you – I'll get to keep an eye on you for once."

"You're not worried about Jess and Hadj?" he asked wonderingly.

"Well, of course. And about you and Race and myself and our five friends. But we're all in good hands, as good as we can ask for. Worrying won't make any of you safer. Getting this done will." And the familiar strength came into his face, the certainty Jonny had watched since childhood when his father would tackle a project or an adventure and _nothing_ could stop him.

"Right," he nodded. And he bent over his task much comforted.

Only to spot something in an image he had missed the first time through.

"Dad! I found it!"


	29. Laying the Foundation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Formatting is so much better here than fanfic.net, especially the way I do it. Sigh. Or I should stop writing flashback sequences – one of the two.
> 
> Enjoy!

The transport cockpit was quiet. That was the most common result of Heero Yuy and Chang Wufei being left alone together. Both were reticent by nature, doubly so when on a mission, and neither valued inane conversation. It marked the departure between them and Duo (who was more often paired with one of them for a mission) whom they both would have accused of being the very definition of inane. In the quiet, they understood one another perfectly.

It was, in fact, a welcome change from being surrounded by so many civilians, in Wufei's opinion. Not that the Quests were particularly trying – compared to the green Preventers recruits they were downright _competent_ – but anyone who needed to talk so much and act so little would eventually find a limit to his patience. The research with Jonny and Benton Quest through the Horus files had been soothing after a fashion until Heero had deigned to pop his head in long enough to announce that he had acquired a transport and was leaving to retrieve the two Gundams from the Preventers headquarters. Technically Wufei could have left him to it, as all five ex-pilots had high enough clearance to do pretty much anything deemed mission-necessary, but he had opted to accompany him anyway. Partly it was to report their plan to Une in person directly, but most of it was because Wufei was frankly curious. The Tallgeese was Zechs's suit, even if he didn't use it much anymore, and _nobody_ was allowed to touch it. Even Noin was under orders to steer clear of it when possible.

When he had learned Heero's plan to take it, he hadn't been totally surprised.

> " _You're just leaving him a note?" Wufei demanded, fighting against the smile threatening to break across his disapproving face._
> 
> " _Hn."_
> 
> " _And you don't think he'll be angry?"_
> 
> " _Of course he will be. But by then the situation will have resolved itself. And even Zechs wouldn't deny that this is a situation that warrants its use. If he were here, I'd ask. But sending him any kind of communication will inevitably be intercepted by Surd," Heero said reasonably._
> 
> " _I am sure I don't want to know the answer to this, but – what exactly are you putting in the note?" Wufei dreaded the answer._
> 
> _Heero handed him the piece of paper in response, turning away to begin the process of transferring the unit to his transport. Because of their combined access and rank (and death-glares), the hangar was completely empty of personnel, and everyone was under orders to keep it that way. The pair had also systematically disconnected every monitoring device in the area. Une had already instituted a base-wide lockdown of all digital communications, so hopefully sealing the hangar would prevent any record of their intentions from reaching their enemy._
> 
> _Wufei looked at the note in his hands. It read:_
> 
> _"I am taking the Tallgeese to intercept the Surd suit. I will return it, condition to be determined by the battle itself. Expect certain repairs to be necessary. I may also be forced to rewrite the operating system as the one Zechs uses is obsolete at best. He will be better served by my improvements. If you insist on court-martialing me for this act, please let the record state that I have the approval of Agent Chang and Agent Winner, and they will speak for me at any tribunal. It would be unwise to argue against them both on this matter or any other."_
> 
> _Wufei didn't realize how hard he was laughing until Heero had to call his name more than once to coordinate maneuvering the transport into place. Whatever else he might be, Heero Yuy was no fool._

Now, halfway back to L2 with the Gundams safely in tow, both ex-pilots were focused on the mission to come. Wufei had received an alert from the Quests that they had located Surd's probable base for his physical body on L1, and that Trowa had tracked Rage himself to a small outpost near L5. Horus showed that the Surd suit was moving in the direction of L4, so their battle would be spread across the colonies. Wufei was just about to contact Quatre and check on the availability of shuttles when the thought seemed to summon him.

Not in person, of course, but as a tug in Wufei's heart, a warmth that could only be from the empathic bond. He looked at Heero in surprise.

"You're not imagining it," the Japanese pilot said without turning away from the control panel. "That's Quatre all right. You'll get used to it."

"Do you know what it means?"

"I have a suspicion. Quatre must be nearly completely unshielded for it to reach us so clearly, and he only ever unshields that much when he has reason. He must be trying to reassure someone."

"But," Wufei narrowed his eyes, "exactly what feeling is this? Even unshielded, he's not directing it at us, but it's strong enough to be felt. We're just getting the empathic echoes through the bond. What feels like this?"

Heero smirked knowingly. "You'll find out sooner or later."

"It is illogical for you to keep information from me that might be tactically important," Wufei grumbled.

"If it were something I thought it likely you would have to interpret on the mission, I'd tell you," Heero replied with a shrug. "But it's not. It's not in the code."

Wufei _hmphed_ in response, but there was no denying the truth of it. The night they had discovered the bond, after dinner with the Quests, the five pilots had spent several hours not only becoming accustomed to their new arrangement, but developing a way to use it. By the time they had prepared their initial assault on Surd's base (which wound up being a rescue mission after the unexpected presence of the Quests), they had developed a means of communicating through the bond with Quatre. He served as a relay station between them – they had discovered that Quatre could send impressions clear enough to indicate which person was sending the emotion as well as what it meant. As signals and codes and such were almost second-nature to all five, it took only a little while for them to reliably pass rather detailed information without any form of technology.

It was astonishing how much Quatre's empathic abilities had grown. Mere days ago, Trowa could not sense Quatre at a moderate distance, and mostly only strong emotions filtered through the shielded bond. Heero, too, had felt mostly just the sense of connectedness unless Quatre was experiencing something profound as with the pain of ZERO and Rage. But now, if Quatre had not been practicing his shielding almost nonstop since realizing the change in himself, it was likely that his every passing, fleeting feeling would have been noticeable to both Trowa and Heero. It seemed that whatever Hadji had done to break Quatre from ZERO had also shattered limits he had imposed unknowingly on himself, and now he was truly embracing his full power.

Still, that did mean those not previously accustomed to receiving emotional inputs from Quatre would have to learn to deal with them.

Opting not to pry Heero for more information about what he was sensing from Quatre, Wufei changed the topic a little. "Winner is planning something, isn't he?"

"Usually."

"Something additional to this mission that he's not telling us about."

"Probably."

"Do you know what it is? It could be vital to the success of the operation for me to know what he is thinking."

Heero turned from the transport's controls and fixed Wufei with a look of supreme disdain. "You've gone soft."

" _What_?!" Wufei's hands curled into fists and he resisted the urge to strike at the insult.

"You've internalized the accountability of Preventers too much," Heero said flatly. "Procedures and forms and paperwork – you know that they don't matter on the battlefield. You probably need those things to work with the empty-headed recruits, but this is us, Wufei. You _know_ how we operate."

"And I know we will operate at peak efficiency if we are fully informed," he returned hotly.

"That's where you're wrong. Every battle we've ever won has come because we worked together and trusted each other to do what he thought was best, not what we thought was best. You didn't know when I installed ZERO in Sandrock before a battle, and you didn't need to know. But when Quatre activated it, you followed. Just do that this time."

"You don't know what he's planning," Wufei realized with a small amount of smugness.

"I don't need to. Do you really think Quatre would do anything that would endanger the mission? If I need to know, he'll tell me. If he isn't telling me, he has a good reason. That's enough for me. And it ought to be enough for you," he said reproachfully.

Wufei didn't have anything to say to that, so he huffed and decided to look through the data he'd already acquired about Jeremiah Surd. Which was in no way admitting that Heero was correct. Not at all.

The Preventers database had contained all the details provided by Race Bannon, as well as more history regarding Surd's incarceration and escape. There was also a psychological profile, but Wufei didn't bother – he knew enough to understand Surd's mind fairly well already. Besides, it was Howard who had proved the most informative. As per Heero's point, questioning the old man had revealed that, indeed, Surd had been the seventh scientist on the Gundam project besides himself and the Doctors. He had been an anonymous source that the Doctors used because he was valuable, but Howard had never trusted him. After parting ways from the others, Howard had made it his business to learn who the mysterious contributor with such knowledge of programming had been. By the time he uncovered Surd's identity, however, Operation Meteor had already begun and Howard had more on his mind than old suspicions.

Still, it confirmed that Surd had not only an intimate knowledge of how to build a proper Gundam, but of the original ZERO program and what the system could do once enhanced. And if Wufei was honest with himself, he thought there was little better way to reprogram the half-ZERO designed by Dr Quest than to put it in the hands of someone like Surd, run it through a ZERO-enhanced brain like Quatre's, and mix the pieces together. Surd's ZERO had all the tactical superiority of Quatre's thinking, the technically nuanced and advanced programming of Quest's invention, and the focus of a mad genius with nothing to live for but revenge and perfecting the program.

Which was precisely why Wufei intended to unplug the tetraplegic by any means necessary as quickly as possible. Surd's ZERO could do more harm even then Rage's missiles. He would be stopped. He had to be.

"Yuy," he said, watching the lights of L2 come into view ahead.

"Hn?"

"Until I apprehend Surd, you have to keep his focus on you as much as possible. The more consuming and unpredictable your battle, the less likely he will pose a threat elsewhere."

"Obviously," Heero responded, annoyed.

"And you have to protect Quatre. And yourself too. We all come back from this, Yuy."

Dark blue eyes met steady black ones. When the two had first encountered one another, neither one of them would have said such a thing aloud, nor meant it, nor felt the import of it. When they had traded fire during Dekim Barton's battle, it had seemed they might never again regard one another as allies. But time, necessity, and the friendship woken in them by their similarities had changed all that. Even before Quatre pulled the other four into a first shared moment of empathy, even before he had come to Wufei for help with his space heart, those rifts that had divided them all were healing.

It was a testament to that change that Heero saw not the proud Chinese warrior but the friend, brother, one-of-five looking out through Wufei's eyes. This had nothing to do with strength or honor.

" _Hai_."

And Wufei believed him.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Hey Quatre," Jessie greeted him cheerlessly. Her eyes returned to the dining room window and the endless darkness of space sprinkled with stars.

"I thought you could use someone to talk to," he said easily, standing beside her.

"Oh, probably." There was something too flippant in her voice. She tucked a wayward strand of hair behind her ear and looked at him closely. "My dad's been reprogrammed by ZERO to become a frothing madman whenever he sees me. Even for us, that's kind of a new problem."

"I understand," Quatre said softly. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Will it make him better?" she asked.

"No, not directly."

"Then what would be the point?" Jessie's voice hitched for a moment and she turned back to the stars. "I'm not saying I don't probably need a team of therapists or something. But we've got bigger problems right now than my state of mind. I can handle this. But if I start talking to you about it and break apart…"

"You might not be able to handle it anymore," Quatre finished.

"Exactly."

"I'm not going to pressure you," he said, "and your choices are your own. But I want you to know that I do understand, and if I can help you now, I will. When ZERO took Trowa from me during the wars, when it took Heero, I was lucky in that they both came back before too long. But the meantime was…difficult."

"Can I ask you something?" Jessie swung back so she was facing Quatre again. She knew she was redirecting the conversation, and the very slight quirk of the blond's eyebrow told her that he knew it as well, but she pressed on anyway. "Something kinda private? You can tell me I'm out of line if you want."

"Okay," he shrugged amiably.

"What is it with you and Heero? I thought you were, you know, _with_ Trowa."

Quatre had definitely not been expecting her to ask that, and he smiled in spite of himself at the confused curiosity she radiated. Well, if delving into his personal matters would give her a moment's respite from her own pain, he didn't mind too much. She reddened as the intimate nature of her question seemed to fully dawn on her and she opened her mouth to apologize but he interrupted her.

"I don't mind telling you. It's okay. Believe me that anything I don't want you to know, you will never ever find out. But I don't want any of this popping up on a fansite or something either," he teased her.

"Of course not!" Her eyes lit up with mock offense.

"You know that I have a bond with Heero, right?" he began. She nodded. "Things have changed recently, but until now, other than Trowa, Heero was the one most connected to my space heart. In fact, he was the one who triggered it."

"But you're not in love with him?"

"Not the way you mean it, no," and he smiled at her again, clearly feeling her own distress dissipating as he gave her something to think about besides her own troubles. "But you're not the first person to ask me that, either."

"It's just…you often pair off with him. Even when you don't have to. And you include Heero in your plans more than Trowa. Or maybe it just seems that way. It isn't that you don't act like you love Trowa, 'cause you do and it's cute. It's just that you seem to default to Heero somehow. Like the way you went with Duo to back up the others the first time we went to Rage's and left Trowa with us. You should have seen…" she trailed off before taking a breath and meeting his eyes. "When you were plugged into ZERO, I thought he had lost his mind. He was grieving as though you were dead. If he'd been with you…"

"There's three parts to this answer," Quatre said gently, "and I'll try to explain all three. It won't surprise you to know that Heero's protective of me. You already know that."

"Well, yeah."

"Heero's not in love with me, but what he feels about me is almost more than that. To Heero, I'm a brother who needs to be protected, a commanding officer to be respected and obeyed, and the reminder that his own heart is alive and meaningful, all in one. He's also the best of us at what he does and we all know it. So when he has any say in things, he'll usually pair himself off with me just because, even though he knows how good Trowa is, and how good I am at taking care of myself, there's a part of him that just can't quite trust anyone, myself included, to protect me."

"So he goes with you to make sure you're okay. And I'm not surprised he doesn't trust you or Trowa. He's not the trusting type," she nodded. "But you said three parts?"

"Well, the second part is Trowa. What you saw happen to him when I was plugged into ZERO, I'd have to guess that was a pretty mild reaction compared to what it could have been."

"Mild!" she exclaimed, remembering his bone-chilling screaming quite clearly.

"Distance used to act as a dampener on my empathy," Quatre explained. "So because he was farther away, he got less of it than he would have if he'd been closer. To be very frank, if Trowa had been on Rage's base when I went into ZERO, he might not have been able to block me out at all. He'd have been unable to keep himself from channeling everything I was feeling and it would have completely overwhelmed him. ZERO and Rage did a lot to impair my ability to shield. I wouldn't have been able to protect him from it. It's not the first time our proximity has been detrimental to a mission before."

"Therefore, you deliberately separated yourself in case something happened so the backlash to Trowa would be less," Jessie concluded.

"Yes, exactly. It's less to Heero anyway, though probably not anymore. Pretty soon I won't be able to go anywhere with anybody," he joked.

"Okay. So I get that Heero feels like he has to protect you, and that Trowa was better protected from you if you didn't stay so close together on a dangerous mission. You've explained it pretty well for why it works that way in your plans, but not in general," she said, "so what's the third part?"

"Me, of course," Quatre grinned. Then, growing serious and turning from her to look out at the stars, he spoke as if to himself. "I do love Heero. But I love Trowa more than I can ever begin to tell you. There aren't words in any language for what he is to me, for what I feel for him. I don't just love him. I'm…connected to him. He's the other half of everything I am. He's as much a part of me and everything I do as my own space heart."

Jessie waited, knowing he would continue.

"Saying that I trust Trowa is like saying you trust your left foot to work in partnership with your right foot when you're walking. If there's something dangerous happening, or if there's divided priorities, sometimes I want Trowa on the other side, not because I don't love him, but because I do. Because having Trowa on the other team is as close as I can get to being there myself. But you're wrong, you know."

"I am?"

"Of the operations on this mission so far, I really haven't separated from Trowa much except the one time when I took Duo to back up Heero and the Quests, and that was a strategic decision on multiple levels. Other than that, we've been together. Although you're correct in that I'm paired up with Heero this time. But not for that reason."

"Yes, but…" she looked for words, "oh, I don't know."

"You're very perceptive," Quatre said unexpectedly, looking sharply at her. "Even if you don't know how to explain what you're seeing, you still notice it and take it under consideration. You trust your instincts _and_ they're largely accurate. That's a rare thing. You'd make a good Preventers agent, actually."

"Thanks, I guess. So you're saying there's something I'm seeing that you do know about already?"

"Sure. You don't witness all our interactions. You never will. But from your perspective, what you see is a great deal of closeness and comfort between Heero and I. And his regard for me is obvious, if you know what you're looking for. I just told you I love him, and you notice it. Even if I march around holding Trowa's hand every second of the day, you might stick your thoughts on the way Heero watches me when I lay out a plan or something and it makes you wonder. I'm not surprised. Like I said, you're not the first to ask."

"I suppose that's it. I can't put my finger on it, but there seems to be... _more_ in what I see when you're with Heero than when you're with Trowa."

"And you're missing the one thing you couldn't possibly know." He turned to the stars again. "I think if you watched long enough you'd see that it isn't much different from Duo or Wufei now that things have shifted – there's an openness to us because we are connected. And you expect to see more between Trowa and I than you do because that would be normal for people in love instead of just close friends. But the part you've missed is this – what seems to be less between Trowa and I isn't because we aren't impossibly bound together. It's because we _are_."

"I don't get it."

"Have you ever woken early and looked at the sunrise and for one perfect, golden moment felt your heart explode in your chest with joy? Felt that you would live forever and ever and that all the world, all of life, is nothing but perfect gloriousness? Felt so much emotion welling up in your soul that laughing or crying or dancing or praying or everything together wouldn't, couldn't possibly capture it all?"

"Yes, I have." Even as he described it, Jessie felt a memory of that broad feeling kindle inside her.

"What Trowa and I feel for each other is ten times that. We feel _so much_ that there is no way to express it. What's between us is too big for that."

"I guess I don't understand," Jessie turned away. "I mean, I do conceptually. The idea that it's too much to show in any way that would be normal makes a weird sort of sense. I just…I can't imagine it."

"Would you like to?"

She looked at him suspiciously, but Quatre's eyes were fixed on her calmly. He held out his hands, palms up, and quirked his head a little. Maybe it was a mistake, maybe it was exactly the wrong thing to do, but in that moment Jessie didn't care. Her own heart was aching. She wanted to know what it felt like to love someone as much as he said. She wanted to know what it meant. She wanted to throw herself into something completely outside everything raging within her.

She took his hands.

Jessie expected a rush of emotion, but it was instead very slow, like the steady buildup of pressure in a colony elevator as the false gravity got stronger and stronger. But before long she felt her eyes widening and her chest tensing. She bit her lips as tears prickled in her eyes.

It was, just as Quatre had said, _so big_. It was almost painful even as it was exquisite in its joy. She wanted to weep and she wanted to shout and she wanted to curl up in that galaxy of emotion and lose herself for the rest of her life. There couldn't possibly be _this much_ _room_ in one person's heart for love, could there? Even in two people's hearts? This was the unbelievable, comprehensive, omnipresent love of fairy tales and myths and legends. It was everywhere. It was too big to be contained, too big to be explained, too big to even be comprehended. It was _impossible_. But it was real. So real.

A moment later the feeling faded slowly just as it became too overwhelming. Jessie gulped against a lump in her throat, not of sorrow or unhappiness, but because her body could not contain all those feelings without tears. Tears of joy, of peace, of completeness, an inarticulate affection and loyalty and protectiveness and security. She never noticed when Quatre withdrew his hands completely.

Jessie came back to herself with her arms wrapped around herself and her chin on her chest. Of all things, she was giggling helplessly.

"So that's why Trowa's never jealous about Heero beings so close to you," she managed. She was almost hiccupping and tears were falling and she allowed herself to sit on the floor as she looked up through wobbly eyes at Quatre who was smiling gently.

"Yup."

"That's…I don't even…How can…"

"See why it's so hard to explain?" he slid down the wall to join her.

"Yeah, you could say that," she tipped her head back and giggled some more, not even bothering to bat at the tears that still fell. It felt so impossibly _good_ , she wasn't capable of being ashamed of any of it.

"I'd ask if you were okay, but," Quatre quirked a half-grin at her, "I kind of already know."

"Is it because of your space heart that what you have with Trowa is so…" she shrugged eloquently at the lack of words, "or is it something else?"

"I don't really know. Being an empath, I can say that I've never known anyone else in love to feel this way, but you can imagine that my life hasn't exactly had a lot of stable relationships in it," Quatre answered quietly. "But that doesn't mean I've never sensed this sort of feeling between people. I see it a lot, actually."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"Where?"

"Well, it isn't identical," he cautioned her, "but the love some parents carry for their children is awfully close. Have you ever seen a newborn in the arms of its mother or father? It's not quite the same, but close enough. Honestly, I'd say that your dad feels pretty similarly to that about you, and so does Dr Quest for Jonny and Hadji."

And of everything else, those words, the honesty in Quatre's eyes and the lingering depth of the emotion rippling through her, gave Jessie the hope she had lost when she had first heard her father scream in the ZERO Sysem. If her dad loved her that much, as much as she had plainly felt, then he would come back to her. Anything else was impossible to the point of being ridiculous. If her dad shared even a bit of the emotion she had just experienced, he could no sooner stop loving Jessie than he could stop his heart from beating.

No matter how long it took, her dad would come back for her in the end. It was going to be okay.

The rush of that realization made her tears take on a more pressing urgency and she threw her arms around Quatre and squeezed him tightly. He held her, nodding wordlessly against her head. Of course he understood what she had just felt. It had probably been his plan all along, actually. Not to force her to talk about her feelings, but to bring them to peace some other way. And he had.

"Thank you," she whispered.


	30. Final Preparations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go!
> 
> Enjoy!

Trowa knocked lightly on the door. A call of "come in" and he was over the threshold.

"It's dinner time," he said, setting down the tray. His green eyes assessed Race carefully.

"Thanks. I appreciate it," he replied easily. Race returned the searching look evenly. He felt pretty confident he hadn't yet been overtaken by ZERO's programming, but he was hardly in a position to know for sure. Trowa watched him for a few moments before turning to the door-lock and typing something into the keypad.

"I've changed the lock," he said without preamble. "You won't be able to get out unless I give you the code. And I won't." He reached into a pocket and pulled out a handcuff key.

"What if I go crazy again?" Race asked, hesitating. As much as he would love to be free of the restraints, he was wary of the risk, apparently moreso than Trowa.

"Then I deal with you until help arrives. Quatre's close enough that he'll sense it and summon help before you attempt the first blow. Even if you defeat me, you won't get far with every Maganac on L2 coming for you with tranqs." Trowa quirked a half-smile and Race felt himself smile in return.

"Thanks," he said sincerely, holding out his arms for Trowa to release him. The instant the cuffs were off he rotated his shoulders and stretched. "Those things sure get old," he commented.

"I'm surprised you didn't pick them," Trowa replied.

"Well, that would defeat the purpose, wouldn't it?" Race returned. "They're not there because I'm a prisoner, but because I'm a danger."

"Fair enough."

Trowa took a seat on the bed, leaving the desk and chair for Race to eat his food. The tray was heavily laden with food from all over the Earth Sphere. A slice of pizza was bumping into a bowl of rice to go along with a pile of steamed Chinese vegetables. Mac and cheese sat incongruously next to some kind of vegetable stew and a pile of naan that was near to tipping into a plate of enchiladas. And it was only his extensive travel that helped him spot the Korean food mixed among the Japanese colony-specific dishes.

"Quite a spread," he commented.

Trowa snorted in amusement.

"Two years ago, when we were just starting to work as a unit for Preventers on certain cases," he explained, "we had a…somewhat heated discussion about proper pre-mission nutrition. Heero and Wufei were insisting on the Asian cuisine, I wanted pizza, Quatre was craving something Persian only he knows how to pronounce, and Duo was shouting about peanut butter. Une got sick of us, kicked us out of her office, and ordered us to do paperwork for an hour, and when we were done she had acquired some of everything for us. Since then, we always have a variety."

"Well, better than bread and water for sure," Race said lightly, digging in. "You don't have to stay."

"You shouldn't have to be alone," the young man replied to Race's surprise. He looked at him, startled to see the focused sincerity on Trowa's face.

"Well, thanks. I appreciate it."

"We intended to leave Bandit with Howard when we go on the mission, but if you prefer I can bring him here," Trowa continued. "It's up to you. If you think you'd hurt him, I won't. But you shouldn't be alone."

"I…that dog would be welcome company," Race admitted. "I don't think I'd hurt him. I don't want to think I would, anyway."

"That's enough, then."

Race ate in silence for a few minutes before clearing his throat. "You like that dog, don't you?"

Trowa shrugged. "Animals like me."

"I can see why. You're patient and you move slowly. Reminds me of some kind of hunting cat." That elicited a pleased smile, but Trowa did not explain. "So you'll all be going to deal with things, then?"

"Yes."

"And you probably can't tell me anything about it."

"No."

"In case it triggers me?"

"That's one reason," Trowa inclined his head. "Also, we don't know what you might do under ZERO's influence if we gave you our tactical information. You could betray us to Surd without intending to."

"Well, I can't fault you guys for being careful. Wish Benton and those kids would take a page from your book."

"Indeed."

"They're going to do something dangerous, aren't they?" Race asked conversationally, stabbing a piece of spiced beef with his fork. "Something I wouldn't like even if I was going along?"

"Yes."

"Figures."

Neither spoke until after Race had finished most of his food. What he left was primarily the bits that would be easy to pick up with his hands constrained. It was instinctive to conserve rations in difficult situations, and Trowa did not remark on it even though he obviously understood.

"You gotta put those things back on," Race said. It wasn't a question. It was almost a command.

"Yes."

As Trowa was affixing them, though, Race met his eyes blazingly.

"Whatever happens to me, you make sure my family is safe. You hear me?"

"Nothing is going to happen to you," Trowa said. "Quatre will help you when he has time. That's why you're here, so he can keep an eye on you," and he indicated the room with his head.

"Then keep an eye on my family. Make sure nothing happens to them."

"I will." Trowa met the intense gaze unflinchingly, his lips twitching at the corners. "You remind me of Heero sometimes. They'll be fine. They can take care of themselves. And we'll be there. No one is going alone."

"I just hate not being able to watch their backs," Race sighed heavily.

"I understand." And there was a tightness in Trowa's words that spoke more eloquently than anything. Race understood all at once that Trowa would be separating from Quatre again in whatever plan they had concocted. Trowa was no less worried about Quatre's safety, or all of the pilots', than Race was for his own family.

"Thanks, kid," he said, stepping back.

It was almost impossible to watch Trowa open the door and step through it, aware that as soon as it closed he would be sealed in the room to await news, never knowing when his family was heading into danger or what they might be facing. He would have broken his own arms to be there beside them in the danger (though it wouldn't do much to help him protect him if he did). But the best protection for them was for him to stay away.

"Surd," he growled, sitting back on the bed, "if any one of them gets hurt because I wasn't there, I'm going to take it out of your hide a piece at a time. I promise."

Ten minutes later, there was another knock at his door.

 

-==OOO==-

 

The hangar was electric with chaos and energy. The Maganacs were all working furiously on their suits, making quick improvements, enhancing them in any way possible, just in case they were called upon to intercept an attack by Rage or Surd. Howard had organized his Sweeper allies into a force of mechanical efficiency, running between suits and newly-arriving parts and weapons caches, jabbering at one another in a language all their own. The only real stillness in the hangar was the palpable margin around the two proud Gundams at the far end that no one approached.

"They're a lot more amazing in person," Jonny said, staring at the two massive mobile suits. He, Jessie, and Hadji were perched on some of the now-empty crates in the hangar, just watching. After Jonny's discovery – the location of Surd's probable base – he had been happy to relinquish the intelligence-gathering to Trowa and Duo. Hadji had also emerged from the bedroom with the faraway look that signaled a recent end to long and profound meditation. They'd grabbed Jessie and absconded with some food as soon as they saw the arrival of Heero and Wufei with the Gundams.

So now they picnicked in the hangar, out of the way and glad to let the experts do what they did best, while they gathered themselves for the mission to come.

"I have to say, I did not truly understand the magnitude of them until this moment," Hadji nodded. "It is not merely their size nor their armaments that make them so impressive, though."

"No, it's…something about them. They're commanding. Intimidating. Like gods of war come to the battlefield," Jessie put in. "I wish we could see them more closely."

"I'd love to climb up in Wing Zero!" Jonny grinned. "Imagine what it must feel like!"

"Maybe after we have completed our objectives," Hadji said restrainingly. But he did not really need to dissuade his friends.

When the transport had docked and Wufei and Heero had navigated the two suits from the shuttle to the hangar, an air of awe had passed over every person present. Quatre, Trowa, and Duo had stood together, tightly shoulder-to-shoulder, watching the suits with unreadable faces. The Quests had been just in time to catch Trowa giving Quatre's shoulder a squeeze as Wufei let himself down out of Wing Zero.

Quatre had seemed not to notice Heero climbing out of the Tallgeese and immediately hooking the suit up to the hangar computer station and beginning what looked like a lengthy recalibration process, his whole focus on the Zero suit. He had moved away from the others without a word or a backwards glance and disappeared at once into the infamous cockpit. Duo had loudly proclaimed for everybody to leave "those two fanatics alone to do their stuff" before bouncing off in another direction, Wufei and Trowa following in his wake. That was an hour ago, and while Heero had moved from his station, occasionally shifting between monitors and a keypad on the Tallgeese itself, Quatre had not so much as poked his blond head out of Wing Zero.

"What do you think he's doing?" Jonny asked, peering at the legendary mobile suit and trying to see inside the shadows of the cockpit to where Quatre remained.

"Do you have any idea how complex those things are?" Jessie returned. "He's probably got a bunch of maintenance to do. Plus, that one has its own ZERO System, which Quatre probably has to test and everything."

"Are you sure that is wise?" Hadji wanted to know. Everyone else may have blithely accepted that Quatre would again use the system that had almost broken him to win this battle, but having seen firsthand the leaping soul almost lost to it, he was having difficulty becoming comfortable with the plan.

"Well, if it were hurting him, I'm pretty sure Heero would know," Jonny pointed out. "He's right there. At Rage's place, when ZERO was too much for Quatre, he could feel it."

"I suppose that is true," he allowed.

"Ha!" Jessie laughed. "You're making the same mistake we did at the beginning!" At the puzzled looks, she grinned. "You keep thinking that Quatre needs protecting because he's so kind and gentle. But he doesn't need us to worry about him. I remember seeing Sandrock in battle. He's tougher than he lets on."

"It is true that underestimating Quatre Raberba Winner doesn't seem to work well in the business world either," Jonny put in.

"Yes, but haven't you ever noticed how certain kinds of strength make you more vulnerable and not less?" Hadji returned. "I am not suggesting he is not strong. I am suggesting that his strength in so many aspects of life may render him susceptible to others. After all, it was Quatre's mind that perfected ZERO for Surd."

"Which is why he's determined to beat it," came a voice.

All three jumped, rubbernecking around to see Trowa leaning casually on the wall behind them. The fact that he was perched on a tiny ledge not wider than three fingers, and that he could only have gotten there by leaping or climbing down from a catwalk above them, made his position even more impressive. And it made the fact that they'd failed to notice his approach somewhat less embarrassing.

"You should head upstairs. Wufei and Duo are getting ready to brief Dr Quest on your part of the mission. You need to be there."

"What about you?" Jessie asked. "You're on our team, too."

"Yes, but since I wrote the briefing for Duo, he can probably spare me," and Trowa gave the slightest quirk of a smile as he stepped onto the crates beside them.

"Let's go. I definitely want to know how we're going to pull this off," Jonny got to his feet, picking up the remainder of their meal.

Hadji looked steadily at Trowa, but said nothing. When the lanky pilot caught the other's gaze on him, he turned and met it fully. The focus of Trowa's green eyes pierced him, seeming to take in every inch of his apprehension. To his surprise, Trowa laughed.

"Perhaps you are the most sensible of us all," he said after a moment. "You have good reason to worry. Quatre does more than he should. But as someone who has much experience with it, I advise you to let it go. You cannot stop him from doing what he thinks he must, no matter what it costs him. No one can change his mind when he has determined his course. Play the part he has designed for you, and trust that it will be what he needs."

Hadji took a breath to ask more questions, but Trowa had already turned away and was moving towards Wing Zero with a casual step, immune to the wide berth everyone else racing around seemed to give the Gundam. Then he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"He's right," Jessie said. "Let him go. We've got a job to do. Whatever Quatre's planning, if even Trowa can't talk him out of it, we don't stand a chance."

Hadji took in Jessie's confident, knowing face and relented. He felt like had only one piece of the puzzle, and it was true that he could not parse the rest of it without more. But, even as he climbed down from the crates and followed Jonny and Jessie out of the hangar, he could not help glancing back at the magnificent Wing Zero and feeling a vague sense of foreboding.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"I hate radio silence," Duo grumbled. He poked at the still and unconnected comm on his wrist irritably.

"You should be used to it by now," Jessie commented. "You mainly worked by yourself in the Eve wars, right?"

"Yeah, but not as much as you'd think. And I haven't worked on my own since joining Preventers. Although," and his eyebrows quirked, "normally I'm paired up with either Heero or Fee-Fee, and they're almost as quiet as Mr Silent over there," he jerked his thumb at Trowa, "but a lot less fun."

"Because having fun is the mission objective, obviously," Trowa deadpanned.

"Why does the radio silence bother you so?" Hadji asked. Duo shifted a little sheepishly.

"Well, you know. I'm sure everybody's okay because of Cat, but it's not quite the same as hearing it directly." He shrugged. "Guess I better get used to it, though, huh? With Cat's little signal all worked out, it's not like we'll need the comms ever again anyway."

"Speaking of Quatre, we've got better things to focus on right now than that," Trowa said, but there was no reprimand in his tone. He looked up, seeming to listen. "That's the signal. We're on."

As he crept forward, Jessie and Hadji exchanged glances. Duo had given a grandiose speech about how each team was to function independently, only peripherally aware of the activities of the others, but that all three teams were ultimately dependent upon one another. Their own objective was relatively straightforward: neutralize Rage and contain or remove his followers and weapons. The specific plan crafted by Duo and Trowa called for Jessie and Hadji to attempt to fool Rage long enough for them to get in position to ambush him.

If he was honest with himself, Hadji was less than thrilled by his own role in the plan. Not only did it put Jessie at risk, unprotected as she would be going in to face the terrorist alone, but it called upon him once again to attempt to use his own hard-won mental disciplines and skills against another human being. What he'd said to Duo earlier was true – it was a betrayal of all he held dear.

And yet.

"And yet, if I must sacrifice my own spiritual needs for the sake of others, for the chance to perhaps save the lives of my friends and countless others, then perhaps that is what I must do," he thought to himself. "Whatever gifts I have are all well and good, but if I cannot prevent a madman from murder, then what are they for?"

Still, it troubled him. It was wrong, a violation, a perversion of the sacred nature of his mind, of his beliefs, of all he stood for.

"Oh!" he breathed in sharply through his nose, almost making a sound but quick to stifle it.

And in that one heart-stopping moment, Hadji understood what the Gundam pilots had been trying to tell him all along. He suddenly understood their sacrifices. He suddenly understood what they had given up in the war for the sake of people like himself.

He comprehended that Duo had given up his own ethics, that Quatre had, that they all had done it not to save a friend, but faceless people the world over who might hate them for it. They had surrendered their principles for the sole purpose of saving lives, including his own, his whole family, everyone he knew.

"Well. Then it is my turn." And he bent himself to his task with, if not an eased heart, at least a clearer intent. He was no happier about what he was about to do, but he could appreciate at last the burdens the Gundam pilots had shouldered alone for his sake and the sake of every person he had ever seen or met or feared or loved, and if they could do that, then he could shoulder this one for them in return.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Zero Three is in place," Quatre reported. The secured line to the Tallgeese had been scrambled in as many ways as Heero could imagine to prevent Surd's ZERO from hacking them. They shouldn't have been using it at all – Quatre knew that. With his empathy as a reliable means of communication, they didn't really need the traditional way. But he couldn't help appreciating the normalcy of it.

"Roger that," Heero replied. "What about Zero Five?"

"They're..." he closed his eyes and reached for Wufei. He could almost sense the Chinese agent moving through the fabric of space. "They're close. Close enough for it to be time."

"Understood."

Quatre almost smiled. He could feel Heero going through the plan in his mind. The attacks had to be largely simultaneous, to ensure neither Surd nor Rage would have time to guard themselves against incursion when the Gundams made themselves known.

"Remember," Heero said after a short silence, "you're support only. You've got other things to do."

"I know, Zero One. Don't worry about me," Quatre replied with fond warmth. He didn't need a space heart to know Heero was concerned.

"Zero Four." The words were said so gently Quatre stopped fiddling with the controls and raised his eyes to the screen so he could meet Heero's gaze. "Whatever you have to do, you are not alone."

That won a real smile. "Thank you."

But as was his way, with the tiniest quirk of a smile in return, Heero returned back to business.

"Time to go. Firing thrusters in three...two...one."

Because the Tallgeese was to be the foremost opponent for the Surd mobile suit, Heero was taking point. As soon as he'd cleared the docking bay of the transport, Quatre was after him, falling into the seductively familiar action of piloting a Gundam as if he had been born to it.

Quatre closed the channel to the Tallgeese and ran his hands slowly over the control panels before him. Even years from having sat here, he still knew every inch of the Wing Zero. Heero's changes during and after the Eve wars, and even the Preventers rebuilding, couldn't take away his innate memory of it. Quatre would never quite remember the feverish haze that had seized him after his father's death, but he could not forget every single wire and fuse and screen of what had been born of his labors afterward. He rubbed absently at a tiny place where one of the panels was slightly offset, where he had been almost delusional with exhaustion and rage and sorrow and, as he knew now, out-of-control empathy – it was less than a millimeter offset, but it was a tiny sharp edge right beside him, a memory, a warning.

"Wing Zero," he whispered in the dim silence. "Last time I did terrible things."

He shivered at the memory of it all. The fury, the lostness, the despair. Ezekiel Rage hadn't overwhelmed Quatre when he'd held him captive because those emotions were _new_ ; he'd overwhelmed him because they were _familiar_.

Quatre took a deep breath, settling himself even farther, reinforcing his shields. It was imperative that none of his nervousness so much as dripped to the others. Everything was counting on his focus and control, and on everyone doing exactly what he needed them to do. And if they were worrying about him, they might become unpredictable.

"This time, it's going to be different." He gripped the controls tightly. "Wing Zero, this time you're going to help me save lives. Last time I almost killed Trowa and Heero. This time I'm going to protect them. I'm going to ask more of you than I ever have before. I'm counting on you."

One hand moved almost of its own accord to take up a wire that was new, a wire that led to something Quatre had added unbeknownst even to Heero. It took less than a moment to connect. He typed the code. Z. E. R. O.

::ZERO System online. Accepting additional interface. System locked.::

"All right, ZERO," Quatre said, feeling the familiar augmented patterns of awareness and processing folding over his mind. "Begin Queen's Gambit."

::Program activated.::


	31. Stages

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been working on my next two Gundam projects, one of which is a series of oneshots and the other a massive, massive crossover. So there's lots to come for me with that crew even as this one draws to its height.
> 
> Not that we're at the end yet. Oh no.
> 
> Enjoy!

Jonny shifted so his legs wouldn't fall asleep as he remembered something Race had told him a long time ago, about how military actions were a study in extreme boredom and extreme terror. This was definitely the boredom part. They'd been crammed in here for more than two hours. Two hours of no fresh air, bizarre switches from stifling heat to surprising cold, and thoroughly stilted conversation.

"So, if I may ask, how do the signals between yourself and Zero Four work?" Dr Quest asked, clearing his throat after many minutes of quietly watching Wufei.

The Chinese agent seemed to consider for a moment, and Jonny could practically watch him calculating the risk of disclosing the information to a civilian before ultimately deciding it was minimal. After all, short of shutting Quatre down, there probably wasn't much anyone could ever do to use such knowledge against the pilots. And Jonny would bet everything he had that it would be a long while before someone figured out how to shut Quatre down again. Unless they wanted to meet the business end of Wufei's katana head-on. Or off, as the case may be.

"It is a simple enough code," he said, not turning away from his screen. "Zero Four is capable of sending an emotion that specifically indicates the person behind the message, a signature, if you will, the way you may recognize the author of a written text by the voice inherent in it. After identifying the sender, it is a combination of impressions and an actual code of bursts of specific emotions with specific durations."

"Such as?"

"Well, if Jonny were trying to alert us to an attack, I would first perceive a 'Jonny-ness' sense. Then I might get a feeling of fear and danger and surprise, indicating the problem. To identify the source of the problem, I would simply wait for the appropriate staccato rhythm to spell the name of the attacker or whatever other pertinent information was needed. Because we can use not only timing but emotional content, the code is more complex than something simplistic like the old Morse Code, but the concept is the same."

"And Zero Four can control it that tightly?" Jonny asked.

"Yes."

Jonny and his father traded a look of surprise. For only a few days with the enhanced empathy, it seemed the Arabian had certainly mastered it quickly. Sensing rather than seeing their expressions behind him, Wufei snorted.

"If you had been in the war, you too would be capable of remarkable emotional restraint and measured expression. Unless you intended to blubber and weep through your battles."

"I am far more impressed with the range he now seems to have," Benton dodged the insult. "We are rather far from Zero Four's position."

"Yes," Wufei actually sounded smug at that. "And his range and control are increasing all the time. By now I believe he can reach us anywhere in space without effort."

"So what is he telling you now?" Jonny wanted to know.

"My last communication from Zero Four was a confirmation that Zero Two and Three were in position and beginning to move out." Absolutely nothing flashed in Wufei's tone to undermine his words, but something told Jonny anyway that there was more he wasn't saying. On the other hand, if Quatre were sharing something else but Wufei didn't mention it, it probably wasn't his business.

A lurch from their transport cut off all further conversation as Wufei bounced from his crouching position fluidly, sword in hand.

"Come on."

Jonny rose next to his father and took a deep breath as adrenaline began to flood his system. This was it. He glanced down almost unconsciously at the uniform both he and his father wore. Wufei had insisted that everyone involved, even Heero and Quatre in their Gundams, at least appear to be official members of Preventers – that way, if any part of any of their operations became known to the public, there would be only the perception of Preventers doing their job. That, actually, had bothered Benton more than anybody else. But then, he had fought so hard during the Eve wars not to be associated with any side; it made sense he would still want to be thought of as independent. However, even more than he valued his neutrality he wanted to be a part of the mission, so there he was, jacket fitting as though tailor-made for him.

To be fair, it probably had been made just for him – Jonny would not be astonished at all to learn that the moment they had agreed to stay with Quatre rather than going with Preventers to a safe-house the master planner had prepared for this eventuality.

The door slid open silently and Wufei stalked through it like a shadow. The first thing Jonny noticed was the smell – while the whole L2 cluster always had a vague scent of an industrial center, the administrative hub of L1 somehow smelled of something slightly false, like a perfume of the city instead of the city itself. But Jonny knew he might be imagining it, even as it gave him a chill. The building just seemed so _normal_. How could it be hiding Jeremiah Surd?

Here, right in the center of L1, in a prestigious high-rise building of apartments and offices, the second penthouse was their destination. After Jonny had used Horus to trace Lorenzo's arrival on Surd's base back to this place, Wufei and Trowa had hacked the building's systems and confirmed Julia's presence as well, looking as though she belonged in a nice suit. The advantage was that there could only be so many people in the large single apartment. The disadvantage was that Wufei had no way of evacuating the civilians in the building without tipping his hand to Surd, so they had to work carefully and be mindful of bystanders all around them.

Thus their cover; the three had crammed into a storage container for a regular delivery of building supplies. The container, quickly retrofit by Wufei with an external camera system, was left in the basement by the sublevel colony transport system, and they had simply arranged put in the container in the room's one blind spot. Even given that, though, it was entirely possible Surd had his own security in place, and there was nothing for it but to move quickly.

The plans for the building firmly in his mind, Jonny slipped from the container after Wufei, his father at his heels. It was only a few steps to the service elevator. Wufei keyed a command on the pad and the doors slid open even though the elevator was two levels farther down. Then he keyed another command and the elevator began to rise.

When the top of the elevator was close, the three stepped into the shaft where they could ride it upwards. They were bound for the floor four stories down from Surd's location, to avoid raising any suspicions. The lift stopped to open its doors, and the faint chatter audible from their position confirmed the presence of civilians. Wufei's face was like granite.

The elevator seemed to pause two dozen times before the command Wufei had put in sent it, finally empty again, to the floor five stories down from Surd's, but opened the doors a level above. They had to climb a bit, but they emerged in the service hallway without incident. From here, the Quests moved in Wufei's wake to a stairwell which they used to get to the level below Surd. Then Wufei led them into the ceiling, then the vents, until they were in position to pop up out of the floor itself.

Crowded in a tiny space, listening for all he was worth, Jonny stifled the urge to sneeze, then to giggle. He peeked back at his father, whose face was grimy with the grease from the elevator shaft and caked with dust from the vents. Their uniforms were in shabby shape now, and nobody would ever think the famous Dr Benton Quest could be the man with a cobweb hanging from his beard.

Wufei raised his hand and signaled, and they charged forward into the unknown.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Daddy?"

Ezekiel Rage whirled from where he had been admiring his arsenal of remaining weaponry. This was not where he had imagined he would be – this was his fallback base, not suited to his aims. There were too many sinners here, lost souls as much a part of the black heart of humanity as space itself. But in the grand scheme of things, having a few monsters to slaughter nearby after releasing his weaponry was no trouble. He had lost a great deal in the raid on his base, but he could still cause a great deal of damage, no, _justice_ across the colonies.

Suddenly his eyes seemed to swim for a moment. His head felt as though it were being compressed.

"Daddy, it's me."

His vision cleared itself and he found himself faced with a sight from his dreams. And his nightmares.

"Karla?" he stepped forward hesitantly.

"It's me, daddy," she repeated. She was almost exactly as he'd imagined her. She wasn't quite as tall as her mother, but she couldn't be old enough yet for that, he realized. Her hair was long, tucked behind her ears, and a little redder than he would have expected, but children do change so much with time. She smiled and held out her hands towards him.

"Karla!" he dropped whatever he had been doing and pelted forward, flinging his arms around her. And unlike every feverish dream or vision, she was real. She didn't fade away at his touch. He drew her close. "Karla, baby, you're here!"

"I'm here, daddy," she repeated, making no move to leave the circle of his arms.

He felt himself almost frozen with the overwhelming reality of his daughter. The world seemed to vanish for a few blissful moments, leaving him with his greatest wish fulfilled at last. How she had come to be in his hidden place in this adrift mining asteroid, how she had survived, where she had been all this time, none of it entered his mind. Nothing could disturb this moment. Until one of the few men who had remained with him, saved from the Preventers by his divine leadership, moved towards him.

"Rage, that's not your daughter," he said cautiously.

"You're wrong!" he roared as though struck. "This is Karla. You think I wouldn't know my own child?"

"She's a Preventer," the man argued. "Look at her!"

" _Silence_!" He tucked Karla against him, almost hiding her in his flowing robes. "Do not mock me and do not move against my daughter or you will regret it!"

Another of the men stepped forward a little more boldly. "I recognize her. She's a Quest brat. Just let us talk to her. We'll prove she's Bannon's kid."

Release Karla? Let her out of his sight? _Never_. "If you question me, you question the Way of Rage," he said darkly. "And traitors shall not be suffered to live. You know the law. All of you!"

It might have been his imagination, but he thought Karla might have shivered a little in his arms. He turned back to her at once.

"It's all right, darling. Daddy won't let anyone hurt you."

"I know. I know you'll keep me safe, daddy," she answered softly.

Yes, yes he would. At any cost.

"This is a trap!" the second man shouted, as though volume would make his lies more true. "Her friends are probably nearby. We need to…"

But whatever he was about to suggest was lost when Rage almost casually drew his gun and fired, hitting the man right between the eyes.

"I will not allow any other traitors to live," he said almost pleasantly. "Who else will speak against me and my daughter?"

Stunned silence, frightened silence, met him. Then, to a man, everyone bent back to their work.

Unnoticed, looking down on the situation from a half-finished shaft above, Duo sucked in a breath.

"Well, if he's gonna kill them for us, this'll go down easier," he murmured. "But if he sees through her…"

"She will be in very, very grave danger," Trowa nodded. He glanced back. Behind them, Hadji sat in a meditative pose, eyes closed. A tiny trickle of sweat dripped down his face, but his expression was relaxed. "Whatever he's doing, it's still working for now."

"Think he'll shoot anybody else, or should we go?" Duo asked. Trowa peered at where Rage was now showing Jessie the missiles he had remaining, gesturing wildly. Jessie followed him with docile calm, nodding and saying little. She was doing an admirable job.

Trowa had advised her that, even if Hadji's gift helped Rage to envision his daughter painted on her features, her greatest asset would be in letting him interpret her however he wanted to. There was no way to know what Rage would see in Jessie, if he would expect an admiring, hero-worshiping child or a more independent teenager. Hadji's gift might encourage Rage's mind to accept what he already wanted to see in her, but Jessie herself would have to comport herself as a blank slate on which Rage would write his own imagined personality for Karla. It was the best trick Trowa could give her as the most skilled infiltrator of the pilots. When you didn't know what mask to wear, you should always choose an empty one – people will see whatever face they want to see as long as you do nothing to challenge their illusions.

"I don't think he'll kill any more," Trowa shook his head. "Let's get the ones we can without alerting him, though."

Duo nodded, his eyes beginning to take on a deep coldness. A pair of knives appeared in his hands and he quirked a dangerous smile at Trowa before moving back down the tunnel, carefully not touching Hadji as he passed. Trowa had not wanted to leave Hadji alone while in meditation if necessary, and silent killing was a particular specialty for Shinigami.

There were fifteen men besides Rage down there, at least seven of which Duo could eliminate without anyone even knowing he was there or noticing they were gone. But the way Shinigami was moving as he cut down a man well out of sight of the rest of the terrorists, Trowa revised that estimate to ten.

Just as well, really. The only unknown outcome now was which of Trowa or Duo got to deal the fatal blow to Rage.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Visual confirmed. Close to combat distance in 30 seconds," Heero reported to Quatre.

"Roger," he answered.

They simultaneously boosted their thrusters, driving ahead towards the massive mobile suit in a coordinated formation. The enemy suit's sensors were sharp, so they wouldn't take it totally by surprise, but then, that wasn't the point. The surprise was Wufei invading the base on L1.

Heero relished the familiar cold rush of battle washing through him – where others might feel fire and passion and bloodlust and excitement, he had conditioned himself to find only icy focus. Which wasn't to say he couldn't be brought to rage, but that even then it took the form of coldness instead of heat. Wild and furious and deadly, it was still and always cold.

He moved his fingers along the Tallgeese's controls with the smooth competency of a concert pianist, never breaking the rhythm of the strategy he knew Quatre would follow. They intended to hit at Surd's suit with all their power and strength to start, an overwhelming assault. When they had a better read on Surd's control over his suit and his proficiency with ZERO, Quatre would back off. If for any reason this was more than what Heero could handle, he would be there, and between them there was no hope for Surd. But this was primarily Heero's fight. Quatre was better positioned to coordinate everyone and see to the other plans.

"Tallgeese," Heero spoke into the quiet of the cockpit, "show me why Zechs values you."

And he threw himself into combat with a clear mind.

Surd's suit met Heero's initial strike with a shield pulled from its back, deflecting the shots by the vulcan cannons and dodging the sweeping blow by the beam saber. Heero had expected as much, wheeling away to leave room for Wing Zero to attack. Where Heero had opted for an almost mild opening move, Quatre showed no such restraint, popping up into the void left by the Tallgeese and leveling both barrels of the twin buster rifles. The blast was bright enough that even the images filtered through the digital modifier on the viewscreen caused Heero to flinch.

The Surd suit had taken the blast to one side, showing a somewhat damaged core and left arm. But it moved with surprising speed to strike back at Wing Zero, which dodged easily out of range. When the Surd suit pursued, Heero dove into the blind spot behind to strike. The Tallgeese's mega beam cannon was not as powerful as the twin buster rifles of the Wing Zero, but it was powerful enough. However, the Surd suit ducked to one side just in time.

"Zero One," came Quatre's voice. For the second time, Heero noted an oddness in the tone, and he spared a moment from his evasive maneuvers to look up at the image of Wing Zero's pilot on his left-hand screen. Quatre's face was utterly composed, neutral, expressionless.

"Receiving you, _Zero_ Four," he answered pointedly. Because he knew all too well what was causing Quatre's unnatural lack of reaction, not to mention the almost imperceptible bond between them. Only being in midst of their own ZERO would bring his emotions so tightly under control.

"Surd's ZERO program will calculate that the Wing Zero is most likely being piloted by Zero One," he said, his words only slightly stilted. "It will view the Wing Zero as the more dangerous adversary."

"Roger that."

Heero cut the connection. Between his experience with ZERO and his knowledge of Quatre he didn't need any other information to understand what his friend wasn't saying. Surd would target Wing Zero because his ZERO would advise him to eliminate the better pilot first. Quatre and his ZERO could use that to lure Surd into a position Heero could exploit.

Accordingly, and his face quirking in a smug smile, Heero rapidly configured a program for the Tallgeese based on the flight patterns of the pilot most likely to be flying it – Lucrezia Noin. Surd's ZERO must know Zechs was off on the Mars project, and the standing injunction against any other person ever flying Tallgeese except her was a matter of Preventers record. Noin was not a bad pilot, but she was not a Gundam pilot. The Tallgeese began to react slightly more inefficiently, turning with greater slowness or taking making less advantageous attacks.

Meanwhile, Surd's suit pursued Wing Zero with a single-mindedness that told Heero exactly how tightly Surd had wound his thinking to his ZERO's patterns. There was something, too, of Quatre's style in its strategy, a complexity in its actions and reactions Heero had never bothered to master, but mostly the Surd suit drove at Wing Zero as Heero had once pursued the Epyon. But with Quatre facing it in his own ZERO, he was more than able to counter Surd as if he were Heero. The Wing Zero flew as it always had, and only because Heero was watching from the Tallgeese could he tell he was not its pilot.

Surd's ZERO was good, no doubt. But as Heero boosted Tallgeese's thrusters again and shot through the void of space, beam saber drawn to strike, he could not help the shout that accompanied him.

"Even without ZERO in my suit, no one is going to defeat me!"


	32. Compromised

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One of my favorite bits here, and one of the first I ever wrote for this story. Can you guess which?
> 
> Enjoy!

Duo looked up as he let the lifeless man fall, his feral smile not abating even a little at the two terrorists who were pointing their weapons at him.

"I know I warned ya that Shinigami was gonna come for ya," he said deep in his chest, almost a purring growl. He was on them before either could get a shot off.

But even as he drove the first dagger home, a cry caught his attention.

"Liar! Betrayer! You will _suffer_ for this!" Rage was howling.

The braided ex-pilot looked up, sliding the second dagger to one side between a pair of ribs negligently while he sought the source of the cry.

Rage had his hands closed around Jessie's wrist and he was screaming almost into her face while she fought to get free of him. She didn't look hurt, and if the well-aimed kick to the side of Rage's knee was any indication, Jessie was not panicked, either. Still, that was a huge guy, and crazy besides, and Duo owed him big time for what he'd done to Cat.

He had begun sprinting around the half-constructed missiles when a blur from above brought him up short. With the grace that was unique to him, Trowa dropped down, spinning a kick at Rage's face and landing on him with all his weight. Rage let out an undignified bellow of surprise and released Jessie.

Showing good sense, Jessie moved off, backpedaling fast and almost bumping into Duo. He caught her before she could stumble and hissed at her, "It's me, Red," before she tried taking his head off.

"Thanks," she said.

"Get to Tubs," Duo nodded at her, giving her shoulders a shove as she regained her balance. "You two can start tearing those things apart" and he waved one dripping dagger at the missiles. Something in his face must have surprised her, but Duo didn't care. Now that she was clear, it was an all-out war.

Trowa had pivoted and moved to face Rage square-on, gun drawn, and Duo wasted no time. He sprinted up on Rage's blind side and unleashed a nasty kick of his own.

"Told ya I was gonna pay you back, you crazy!" he cackled.

But Rage took the momentum of the kick and bent to it, driving towards Trowa. Trowa calmly shot his readied weapon, but the madman must have been a lot less worried about a bullet in the chest than a normal person because he didn't even slow down. Instead, he closed his meaty hands around Trowa's throat.

Duo expected his friend to casually flick the hold off, as he'd seen him do before. When Trowa didn't after a heartbeat, he closed the distance between them with a note of doubt rising up.

Trowa's eyes were blown wide open, and his face was contorting in a visage of pain.

A sickening trickle coiled in Duo's stomach and he realized what was happening too late. He closed his hands over his chest as his heart lurched strangely to one side with pain.

"Red…Tubs…" Duo thought he shouted around a growing darkness, "Zero Four…compromised. It's…on you two."

And he was lost.

 

-==OOO==-

 

Breaking through the floor had been easier than Benton expected, but then, he hadn't had much need to infiltrate expensive apartment buildings before. Wufei had led the way, and before Benton was out of the crawlspace and on the floor above two men were down, though he had heard no shots; even so, the tight _hsst_ of the katana striking true was audible in the open space. They had come out in what the building plans showed was to be a large formal parlor, but in Surd's case appeared to be a supply area.

Wufei waved Benton and Jonny down behind a crate as two more men rounded a corner forged of what looked like munitions containers. Wufei's dark eyes didn't even shift as he cleanly executed them as well.

"This way," he said in an undertone, beginning to peer around one of the containers. But he jerked back so quickly Benton was sure he'd been shot.

"Agent Chang!" he exclaimed. Jonny was quicker, though, and caught Wufei before he overbalanced.

"What's wrong?" Jonny asked in a hissed whisper.

"Zero Four," Wufei's gaze was unfocused, and his hand clawed at his chest. "Something's…something's wrong."

His eyes settled on Benton and sharpened. "Quest. Shut down ZERO. Stop Surd. You may not get another chance." His face went totally grey and his head wobbled to one side.

"You're gonna be okay," Jonny said, keeping his tight grip on the agent's shoulders. "I'm sure he's fine."

"You're a fool," Wufei replied sharply, reflexively like a sneeze. His eyes fluttered.

"Agent Chang," Benton said urgently.

"Um…dad?"

He looked up at his son's tone and saw what had caught Jonny's attention – a shadow moving towards them on the floor as one of Surd's men was about to turn the corner and spot them. He turned back to Wufei in time to see a cold sweat break out on his forehead moments before his eyes closed entirely and he slid to the ground.

 

-==OOO==-

 

Quatre was so surprised by the sudden fire lancing through his heart even ZERO's influence didn't keep him from crying out and doubling over, clutching his chest. In fact, if not for ZERO's presence and the pre-programmed Heero-like evasive maneuvers, Wing Zero would have been blown out of the sky; instead, the suit fired as predicted, neutralizing the inbound missiles.

"Trowa," he choked out around a throat closed with pain. "Trowa Trowa Trowa…"

"Zero Four!" Heero's strangled voice broke through Quatre's litany. He looked up at the screen. Heero's eyes were wide and he was grabbing at his own flight suit much the way Quatre was. "What is it?"

"It's…Rage," he managed. There wasn't time to relay all the logical implications ZERO was feeding him about how he'd been right that Rage had some kind of basic psychic abilities, that Rage must be projecting into Trowa who had no real defenses against such an incursion, that their bond was too deep for Rage's influence to be caught and neutralized in Quatre's shields or his ZERO program's defenses.

"Zero Four," Heero struggled for every word. "I _have_ to end this now."

"I know." Quatre fought to shield the impact to Heero as much as he could, knowing that for every inch of effort he put into blocking the backlash from Heero he was opening up the influence to the other pilots. But he couldn't protect them all. He made the strategic sacrifice.

"Zero One, NOW!" he ordered.

It was like being pulled apart by a thousand pinpricks of fire dragging in different directions, but Quatre forced the bile rising in his throat down. He slammed shut his bond to Heero for an instant, and the Tallgeese immediately blurred forward at its best, 15G speed.

The channel was still open, so he could hear Heero shout.

"Mission accepted!"

The mega beam cannon flashed in the darkness of space and the Surd suit exploded.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"What's happening?" Jessie turned to Hadji, who had been woken out of his meditation when the illusion in Rage's mind had fallen. He had wasted no time getting down from his position to find the others in the terrorists' cavern.

He took in the sight of Trowa, held up only by Rage's hand on his neck, the terrorist laughing maniacally in the slack face. Duo was not far away, curled up on the ground and making a very small noise. There had only been two other agents at Rage's disposal left standing, and Jessie had expertly brought them down with a tranq gun from inside her Preventers jacket.

"Rage's influence is impacting Zero Four through Zero Three, powerfully enough to compromise even Zero Two," he said quickly. "We must assume the same is happening to the others."

"Then they won't be able to distract Surd!" she exclaimed. "He'll be ready for Dr Quest and Jonny!"

"So we must attempt to liberate these two as quickly as possible. But," and Hadji fixed his dark eyes on Jessie seriously, "we have our own priorities first."

"You can't be serious!"

"Jessie, believe me, I don't like it either," he threw up his hands, "but they are trusting us to follow their orders. Dr Quest and Jonny can handle Surd without Zero Five. If the others are as compromised as these two, there is nothing we can do for those fighting in space – either they are already dead or they have already succeeded. We have to complete our tasks before we think about anyone else, now while Rage is distracted."

She swallowed what she had been intending to say and looked across to the panel Rage had shown her when he thought she was Karla. The missiles in this part of the space junk that Rage had used for his base this time couldn't hurt anyone from here, but he had several loaded into rigged launching bays already.

"Okay. You _keep_ Rage distracted if he loses interest. I'll get the guns."

She wasn't sure what Hadji might try, but if he even bought her a few seconds she could attempt to overload the system and blow up the missiles before they were launched. It was all she could do.

 

-==OOO==-

 

Jonny got Wufei's limp form behind a crate just as Surd's right-hand agent Julia rounded the corner. He drew his own tranq gun, but his father beat him to it, neatly shooting her in the shoulder. She went down before she even realized she'd been shot.

"What're we gonna do?" he asked.

"Jonny, you have to stay here with Agent Chang," his father said calmly. "We can't leave him alone in case there are more of them."

"Yeah, but…"

"No buts, son." Incongruously, his father smiled. "I may not be a Gundam or Race or even you kids, but I was doing this sort of thing before you and Hadji figured out how to sneak onboard the first Dragonfly. We have a job to do and there are countless lives at stake. I'm going to make sure Surd does not hurt anyone else with ZERO."

Jonny opened his mouth to object but closed it again. He nodded tightly.

"Good. If I need you, I'll call for you. I'm proud of you, son." Benton squeezed Jonny's shoulder once before rising and vanishing without a glance backwards.

Jonny shifted back to where his dad had been crouching, where he could see around the crates that hid them from view better. He paused to glance at Wufei, who was unconscious or dreaming or who-knew-what, and breathed out angrily.

"Whatever you have to do, guys, fix this and wake up. We need you!"

 

-==OOO==-

 

Quatre's mind was reeling under the influence of Rage. He could feel that Duo and Wufei had completely broken under it, and he was horrified to realize that his ability to protect Heero from it was eroding, too. In a moment all five of them would be paralyzed in that overpowering presence.

So he did the only thing he could do before he was completely overwhelmed. Quatre typed a secondary command, unleashing ZERO's full power, when previously he had only been using it at half its capacity.

ZERO rose up, mechanically logical and infinitely strategic, and sharpened the human intellect that drove it beyond anything it had ever done before. Beyond even the key component's ability to feel.

::Inbound influence damaging to key component. Capacity to eliminate influence at source presently nonexistent. Option – sever connection to compromised module. Consequence – overall weakened strategic position. Negative. Option – overwrite system controlling all module interfaces. Consequence – key component rendered superior to opponents and immune to influence. Initiate.::

The only way to achieve complete and total victory was to overpower that which had caused weakness in the user. To eliminate that which made a human vulnerable and replace it with unperturbed rationality while yet maintaining a connection to the other external modules for tactical purposes. ZERO recalibrated itself and offered utterly inhuman genius beyond the foibles of emotion to the mind that was seeking it, and when they merged, there was a moment of flawless reasoning perfection.

::System fully automated. Outside influence no longer relevant.::

And then something else began to pull at the edges.

Some of Wufei's sharpness and his search for justice in a world built on unfairness. Some of Duo's kindness and bright laughter that was sometimes the only warmth in the cold of life. Some of Trowa's conviction and selflessness when that which matters trumps all consequences. Some of Heero's ferocity and hope in the face of overwhelming odds. Some of Quatre's wisdom and abiding affection for more than individuals, but for the concept of individuals, the true belief in things worth believing in.

" _The only way to live a good life is to act on your emotions_."

Five souls united in the brain of ZERO and the heart of space. ZERO saw no value in the emotion of connection that bound them, just the connection itself, but they did and as one they proved their case, refusing to let their feelings be purged. There was logic, after all, in the vulnerability of being human and being connected through the added strength it would give them. There was advantage in being more than an extension of the program itself. Bound heart and soul, there was more they could achieve together than just total victory.

And in that moment, in every way, heart and mind and everything beyond logic, they were truly one.

::Subroutine activated. All modules responding at full capacity. Unified configuration achieved. Execute Queen's Gambit phase two.::

Behind a stack of crates in an L1 apartment building, one of the five snapped upright, black eyes unseeing as he made his way to the nearby console and began typing furiously.

On a mostly-abandoned asteroid, one of the five turned in the grip that held him and latched on tightly while the other rose from the floor and began rewiring the nearest bulkhead.

In one Gundam floating in the dark, the pilot was completely still, his mind racing through programing and recalibrating computer code remotely.

And in the last Gundam, ZERO's key component fueled the connection, five-made-one, coordinating them all in spectacular, efficient oneness of purpose and result.

::Initializing remote destructive routine. Target acquired. Transmitting via independent interface.::

 

-==OOO==-

 

"That's the signal!"

Rashid relaxed marginally even as he began working with the controls. At least now he knew what was happening and what help his Master needed. The not-knowing was far worse than what the signal portended.

"You have your assignments," he said over the open channel. "Only breach radio silence if you fail. Auda, Abdul, I am counting on you."

"Yes sir!" the pair replied smartly.

"For Master Quatre!" the cry went up across the various interconnected units. With that as their rally, all of the Maganacs separated into groups, cutting their communications and throwing themselves into their tasks with as much fierce devotion as they had ever taken into battle.

From his concealed position, then, Rashid led his force forward.

 

-==OOO==-

 

Benton crept through the doorway and down the narrow hall, tense to every tiny sound. But only the distant whoosh of the air cycler and the nearly inaudible hum of several computer banks working met him. With Julia already down, it was pretty unlikely Surd had any other people working for him in the apartment, as she was usually the last to stray from his side; still, even if he could defend himself, Benton Quest was not a master at hand-to-hand combat. He'd rather catch an opponent by surprise than be surprised himself. So he moved very, very cautiously.

At a large, closed set of double-doors, he paused, checking the tranq gun and transferring it to his grip before easing the door open with a hip. Benton almost looked over his shoulder, expecting to see Race there with him, but caught himself. It wasn't that he was at all afraid to be without his friend – it didn't seem right, however, to be doing this on his own.

All that aside, he pushed into the room and took up a position against the door, gun up just in case.

The room had obviously been converted from a decadent bedroom to Surd's center of operations. Wires snaked across the floor in clumps and bundles, connecting a dozen refrigerator-sized servers, interlinking them with consoles that looked as though they had been ripped directly from the walls of military installations. Every vertical surface not covered by the towering equipment was alight with more than a dozen monitors, some of which scrolled computer languages faster than the eye could track while others showed camera feeds throughout the Earth Sphere.

But in the center of the room, on a dais which probably once held a bed, was an elaborate throne.

Benton had met Jeremiah Surd before, had seen him in the chair that seemed almost another body, encasing him from just beneath the chin to the floor. His head was the only part of him that looked human instead of machine, always listing to one side, his eyes flicking rapidly in his otherwise slack face. The chair that was conveyance and life-preserving medical station and armor all at once had been a prison, too, the only limit to that magnificent, evil mind.

The chair remained, but this time Surd's head was encased in a dark-visored helmet that flashed from within as images played that only he could see.

"Come in, Dr Quest. It is nice to see you once again," Surd's voice sounded from everywhere. "I commend you for daring to appear alone."

"You know I can't let you hold the entire human race hostage to your madness, Surd," Benton said, tucking the gun away as there wasn't an inch of skin he could shoot and it was therefore useless.

"You are so very amusing when you say such stupidly gallant things, Dr Quest," Surd replied. On one of the monitors on the facing wall, an image of Surd's face as it had been reproduced on his mobile suit appeared, smiling a sickening smile.

"And you only bluff when you've already lost," Benton snapped.

"It is true I have suffered a minor setback," Surd admitted, "but the true power I now wield is beyond a mere armored form, albeit a rather large and impressive one."

Benton held himself very still so Surd would not sense him quietly rejoicing – that 'minor setback' could only be that Heero and Quatre had successfully destroyed his mobile suit. That was a major point in their favor, and if he was smart, he might be able to use it. But he still couldn't count on the pilots themselves if Wufei was any indication of their state.

"Would you like a demonstration of my power?" Surd offered.

"No, I'm fine," he answered politely as though turning down a glass of water.

"Oh, but I insist."

The screen next to the one showing Surd's face flickered until it shifted and displayed one of the colonies. From the external markings, Dr Quest identified it as a small colony attached to the L3 cluster. From the size and shape, he'd guess it was largely residential in function. The view shifted again until it was an interior view of the colony from one of the internal monitoring devices. Streets awash in people going about their lives, in total ignorance of their new role as pawns, made something cold settle in Benton's throat.

"Your wife was from L3, wasn't she, Dr Quest?" Surd asked in a sinister voice. Benton swallowed and made no response.

A series of warning lights began to flash in the image and the people looked up in alarm. And after a moment, they began to run and scream in panic. A gauge appeared at the edge of the screen, showing the level of atmosphere from inside the colony.

"Stop it! They'll die!" he couldn't help but shout. Surd was venting the air by overriding the colony controls!

"Yes, they will. Is this enough to make you respect the power of my mind and the ZERO System, doctor, or shall I crack open another colony for you? Easier than making eggs, and _much_ more satisfying."

Benton didn't know what he would do, but he had to do something. Hundreds of thousands of lives hung in the balance on what happened in the next minutes.

Sprinting forward, Benton grabbed a sizeable section of the thick cords that connected Surd's chair to the elaborate system throughout the room. With a strength born of desperation, he pulled hard. The cords snapped from the chair with surprising ease. He grabbed for another set and started on them as well.

"So predictable, Dr Quest," Surd admonished him. "Of course, it will be a matter of moments to reroute my cognitive functions. And certainly you have momentarily disrupted the scope of my influence. But not enough."

Benton had just yanked the second bundle of cords free when he felt a searing, burning pain arc across him.


	33. Coordination

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this chapter does what I intend. It was amazing to write, so I would like to believe you'll get at least half as much joy reading it as I did preparing it!
> 
> I'm dedicating this to all my awesome IT friensd and coworkers who have taught me more about systems, programs, database structures, and the tiny details that make them run than anybody ever imagined I'd need to learn. It came in very slightly kinda a little handy here!
> 
> Enjoy!

"Hadj, what's happening?" Jessie called from where she was fighting to get through the password-protected system lockout on the missile-firing console.

"I…am not sure," Hadji answered.

It seemed Duo and Trowa had only just gone limp and lost in what must be the overwhelming influence of Rage when they both shortly thereafter returned to themselves. Only not entirely – it was clear to Hadji that what he was seeing was not at all normal for his friends.

Trowa, face exquisitely blank, was paying the huge hands around his throat almost no mind. Instead, he had shifted in the grip until he was tightly entangled with Rage, pinning him even as he was pinned. Duo, meanwhile, eyes almost freakishly wide, had streaked over to a computer bank and was rapidly changing the connections under the panel, causing the screens to display some sort of code, but not in any computer language Hadji knew.

Suddenly everything in the place lit up: warning lights and computer screens and control panels. Jessie jumped back in surprise as the screens to the system she had been navigating disappeared. Even the half-finished missiles themselves lit up as though activated remotely.

A single message crawled across the screen closest to Jessie.

"Operation Meteor principles activated. Retreat."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Jessie and Hadji exchanged perplexed glances.

A moment later, Trowa made a soft huffing sound, and Rage let out a cry of denial as he found himself flat on his back, the lean acrobat having neatly flipped him. He produced from a pocket a small set of manacles with a long tether.

"Zero Three, what are you doing?" Hadji called.

But Trowa ignored him; joined by Duo, they managed to force Rage into the restraints. Duo took one end of the tether and wrapped it twice around one of the now-active missiles. He locked it in place, almost nonchalantly ignoring Rage charging him from behind. Jessie and Hadji, however, were not so relaxed, and they struck in a combined effort, knocking Rage's feet out from under him.

"Zero Two, what is going on?" Jessie demanded.

Neither Duo nor Trowa responded, but both turned and began to walk away from Rage and his weapons in the direction of the hangar in which they had arrived. Jessie and Hadji looked at one another rather desperately.

"Unless you have any better ideas…" Jessie finally shrugged and started after them.

"I do not," Hadji shrugged back. "But wise is the man who follows the path that is before him."

They were only just outside the terrorists' cavern when they heard footsteps approaching. Both prepared themselves for a fight, only to let out relieved breaths simultaneously when they found themselves faced with Rashid and a good number of his Maganacs. At the sight of them, Rashid smiled grimly and keyed a rapid command into the communicator at his hip.

"Come on," he said, putting a hand on each of their shoulders and steering them back down the corridor towards where Trowa and Duo had already disappeared.

"Seriously, Rashid, _what is going on_?" Jessie craned her neck to look up at the big man.

"It is a contingency prepared for by Master Quatre," he answered. "You have done your part, and he has done his. Now we must flee."

"But why?" Hadji wanted to know.

"Because in a moment this will not be a good place to talk," came the response.

 

-==OOO==-

 

On L2, a small terminal in a locked room beeped insistently. It was so unexpected it prompted a very startled bark from the room's canine inhabitant.

"It's okay, boy. I got this. It's just like he said."

 

-==OOO==-

 

::Initial mission objective complete. Signal for secondary subroutine received. Continuing to subsequent phase. Begin component separation and objective reallocation.::

 

-==OOO==-

 

Jonny had hesitantly followed Wufei when the Chinese agent had sat up so abruptly and headed, heedless of any possible danger, towards a nearby computer terminal where he proceeded to type extremely quickly. Jonny had taken up his watch again, not sure what was happening but realizing that no amount of asking would give him answers yet.

But he almost leaped out of his skin at a low groan from behind him after several minutes of silence. Turning, he stared at the sight of Chang Wufei blinking his black eyes and rubbing his temples as though drilling into them with an ice pick, the screen before him now scrolling with computer code.

"Are you okay?" he asked worriedly.

"Zero Four is an idiot. And if the others don't kill him for it, I will." He drew his sword from where he had instinctively sheathed it when he'd been compromised. "Hurry. We have to move _now_."

 

-==OOO==-

 

Heero came back to himself with a gasp, as though he had been drowning. His flight suit felt cold and his helmet too small – he pushed open the visor just to get a deep breath. There was sweat congealed in his palms under the gloves and he flexed his fingers experimentally.

The viewscreen before him showed precisely what he last remembered seeing before everything had taken him from himself – the Tallgeese floated aimlessly amidst the debris of what had been Surd's mobile suit. Tallgeese had been automatically scanning for any remaining portion of the suit that might constitute a threat, but there was nothing worth considering. As momentum shifted the position of the suit, the Wing Zero came into view.

"Quatre," Heero said, feeling his thoughts coalesce again into something more coherent.

Wing Zero was not floating aimlessly. It was as solid a sentinel in the dark emptiness as a beacon in the night, and even at this distance Heero could see that Wing Zero was anything but idle. It still flashed with life, though so still in the remains of a battlefield.

"Zero Four," he opened the channel between them. "Come in, Zero Four."

No response.

But the Tallgeese unexpectedly launched a program and Heero found himself with direct access to Wing Zero's functions, including its connection to the transport that had carried them this far from L2. From here, the Tallgeese could not only bring the transport to them and fly it remotely, but he could actually fly Wing Zero without having to hack it or board it.

Even if he wasn't responding, Heero knew a command from Quatre when he saw it.

Changing tactics, Heero reached for the bond that held Quatre in the corner of his awareness. He met the connection, vibrant and alive, but strangely cold. There was no sense that Quatre was listening to him, no sense that Quatre was aware of him, far more distant than he had been before under the influence of their ZERO. He also could not feel any emotion coming from Quatre, either because there was nothing to feel or because of powerful shielding, but that was what gave him the final clue.

"You _baka_ ," he said over the open channel. "I told you that you weren't alone. You shouldn't do it this way."

Then he snorted. "But if you didn't, then you wouldn't be you."

 

-==OOO==-

 

Hadji and Jessie followed Rashid to where they had left the very fast Preventers shuttle that had carried them to this floating rock. Duo and Trowa climbed into the shuttle without a backwards glance, but the Maganacs called a quick roll before boarding this and another situated nearby. To Jessie's surprise, along with the last-arriving Maganacs were several men and women she had not seen in Rage's base of operations. At her look, Rashid smiled.

"Our orders were to retrieve any civilians left here. Illegal miners, people who were unable to make a living on the colonies but couldn't get back to Earth, that sort of thing. We were given a precise mapping of the installation as well as the exact locations of everyone who was not a part of the terrorist group to escort them to safety."

He shouted something in Arabic and all the other civilians were led onto the shuttle the Maganacs had brought, leaving only Rashid and two or three of his men standing before theirs with them.

"We should go," Hadji said suddenly. "Unless I am very much mistaken, we will not have solid ground on which to stand very shortly."

"You're correct," Rashid nodded, gesturing for them to enter the shuttle. Then he turned to one of the others. "Jamal, you will pilot."

"What about Zero Two and Zero Three?" Jessie wondered.

"If I am any expert, and I am not, I believe they will be grateful for the rest," he answered.

When they climbed aboard the shuttle, they could see that Duo and Trowa had already strapped themselves in on the benches rather than the cockpit seats. The man called Jamal took his position and Rashid settled in just behind the Gundam pilots even as the Maganac transport took off from beside them. Jessie and Hadji had just clicked their own harnesses in place when they were in motion, heading away from the asteroid at great speed.

"Is anybody going to explain what just happened?" Jessie asked in the quiet of the shuttle when the initial takeoff shaking had settled down.

"We rigged it to blow."

To their surprise, that was Duo, stripping off his gloves and running a hand through his wild bangs. He was pale and sweat dripped from his face. He let out a half-laughing, half-shuddering sigh. Then he reached into the thickest part of his braid at the back of his neck and drew out a detonator.

"Wakey wakey, Trowa," he said with tired mirth. "You know you wanna see this."

As though his words had broken the trance, Trowa's own eyes sharpened and he took a deep breath, pinching the bridge of his nose. He said something so softly only Duo could hear, causing him to laugh a great deal more like himself.

"Maybe this'll make you feel better," Duo said, lifting the detonator. He turned to where he could see out one of the windows, where the asteroid was now rather farther behind them. He smiled a dark, savage smile. "I so owe Cat for this. He's such a good friend to let me be the one to kill Rage."

He clicked the detonator and a series of explosions broke out across the base they had so recently left. Three or four different blasts echoed one another, each bigger than the last. A heartbeat later, the whole asteroid was obliterated in a flash of light, accompanied by Duo laughing triumphantly.

"Trowa, are you okay?" Jessie asked. He looked awfully 'green around the gills' as her dad would have said.

"I'm fine," he said, and his voice was admirably calm and even. He leaned back, tipping his head so he could stare at the ceiling. "It's just a reaction."

"Perhaps you should tell us what you have experienced," Rashid suggested. "Master Quatre gave me his orders, but not his reasons or his plans."

"I don't totally get it, but I kinda know what happened. So, okay, let me see if I've got this worked out," Duo jumped in, eyes still bright from the glee of the explosion. "Rage grabbed Trowa, and that hit Cattie like a truck through their connection. And all our brains went kablooey. Right?"

Trowa nodded.

"Then…Cat had something planned. Something with ZERO. I know I didn't dream it. Were we all in ZERO together somehow?"

"Effectively. Quatre found a way of using ZERO to enhance his empathic connections with all of us to the point of near-telepathy. He wrote a program into the system to take advantage of our connection but lock out the emotional part coming from Rage," Trowa explained.

"How did he do something like that?" Hadji wanted to know.

Trowa shrugged.

"But you knew?" Rashid asked.

"He tested it with me while Duo was giving his briefing back at L2. He didn't tell anyone – he kept it just between us."

"Okay, but why?" Jessie shook her head. "I mean, what did we need it for?"

"Well, for one, when Old Crazy grabbed Trowa, I dunno if any of us was gonna be good for anything," Duo said thoughtfully. "Being in ZERO took all that away."

"Quatre didn't tell me his plan, but I think I know what he's doing anyway," Trowa said.

At their expectant faces, he finally brought his eyes down and faced them.

"He was originally testing ZERO to see how far into it he could go without disrupting the rest of us empathically. But the program he wrote actually pulled me in with him during the test, which, I think, gave him the idea. He knew it was possible that Rage would overwhelm us all through our connections to him, so I think he prepared ZERO to use that as the impetus to set the rest of his plan in motion."

"You're saying Quatre used Rage's interference as a trigger to pull all of you into ZERO together. And once there, you were no longer subject to Rage's disruptive influence, and could take action as a coordinated unit." Hadji ran through it in his mind before continuing, "I suppose that follows. But to what end?"

"To get Wufei to go along with it."

 

-==OOO==-

 

"That _manipulative_ , _over-thinking_ , _selfish_ , _unrefined_ sack of dog—" Wufei cut off the rant as he skidded to a halt before a large set of double-doors.

"What did he _do_?" Jonny was both horrified and dying of curiosity to know how Quatre had upset him so. He also wanted to giggle at seeing Wufei so angry, but thought that might not end well and held himself in check.

Wufei didn't answer immediately but instead threw his shoulder at the door. It failed to even shift in its frame, evidently secured from within. Wufei growled and began pulling out a small amount of plastic explosives; even through his obvious anger, however, he still meticulously measured the size of the charge and put a conservative amount on the door before affixing the detonator and moving back around the corner, shoving Jonny with him.

"In his _infinite wisdom_ , Zero Four has absorbed himself completely into the ZERO System's grasp, uploaded it into Horus, and is now battling Surd on every digital or virtual front across the ESUN simultaneously. He used me to open the computer system here to Horus for him to infiltrate directly, and by this time he is waging an all-out war against a dangerous super-program and a madman _, by himself_ , using an _untested_ function of a _top-secret project_ in conjunction with an _unstable mind-altering system_. Cover your ears."

Wufei didn't even pause for breath before setting off the detonator, and even Jonny's quick obedience wasn't quite enough to keep him from hearing a slight ringing for a few moments.

The pair did not stop, however. Chang Wufei in the lead, they charged forward, through the now-opened doors, and threw themselves into the room, ready for anything.

"Dad!"

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Zero One. Come in Zero One."

Heero frowned. He'd registered the two mobile suits approaching, and from their readings had known they could not belong to anyone but Maganacs with their hastily retrofitted specs, but as far as he was aware they were not supposed to be anywhere near these coordinates. He keyed a command for Wing Zero to take up a position and hold it, then piloted the Tallgeese to intercept.

"Identify yourselves," he said coldly. The suits were Maganacs, but the pilots might not be.

"Abdul and Auda," one replied, and visual transmissions accompanied the words. Those were two Maganacs he knew well enough. "We're here to escort you and Master Quatre to L4."

"On whose orders?"

"Master Quatre's, of course," Abdul looked at him in confusion.

Heero let out a measured breath. "Roger that." He didn't bother asking why L4 or what else Quatre might have told them. Not only was it irrelevant, but it wouldn't give him the answers he actually needed.

He cast a part of himself back along the connection to Quatre, but there had been no change.

"Wufei better be doing his part, or I will kill him," he mused with some heat. "Because if he fails, one of us will have to go into ZERO and get you back, Katoru."

 

-==OOO==-

 

::Access point located. Isolated. Juncture L3B042 controlled. SQL Dim 1 rewritten. Virus eradicated.::

::Observational stream interrupted. Network ABS9870 compromised. Purging. Network secure.::

::Virus located in internal server 42. System shutdown initiated. Rerouting primary functions to server 29.::

On some level, hundreds of disconnected pieces of information flashed through his awareness. Maybe they were written one each on the grains of sand swirling around him, or scrolling through the sky like messages from beyond. But these were simple mechanical processes. He didn't need to pay attention to them. A human body did not consider circulating blood or passing electrical impulses. These functions were routine and background and took no efforts to manage.

So most of Quatre's awareness was focused on the desert in which he found himself.

"It comes to this, does it?"

Quatre turned to see what he knew must be Surd facing him. ZERO fed him a certain wealth of information about how Surd's avatar had been gathered through multiple routers and systems and was the focus of his attention while his ZERO continued its operations just as Quatre's did. The Surd he faced looked like a man, dressed in black, with the same face that had crowned his mobile suit.

"It is logical," Quatre pointed out. "Each conflict of ZERO will be determined based on the cleverness of the programming and the strategic genius of the mind guiding the program. But ZERO cannot combat or even comprehend a human element."

"You are the one, then, who perfected my ZERO," Surd smiled coldly. "Remarkable. You remind me of Jonny Quest only…weaker."

Quatre smiled in return, his dark shark's smile, the one that sent wise opponents running on the battlefield and in the boardroom. Surd could not have known the rich satisfaction Quatre derived from being underestimated. It made victory so much sweeter.

"We could just wait for ZERO to determine which of us has achieved total victory," he suggested easily. Surd missed his expression and spoke onward in true megalomaniac fashion.

"My ZERO informs me that such a strategy will lend itself to you, because you have other allies who will interfere from outside this world of our creation. Unless I court failure, I must destroy you here and now. Then I will be free to do the same to the Quests and whatever forces you have brought to bear."

"As you wish."

What followed was a battle more fantastic than any fought by men and mobile suits. The scope was that of the mind, and thereby nearly limitless. Surd attacked Quatre with a sword made of flame, and Quatre parried with a pair of shotels that burned with black ice. Surd transformed himself into a swarm of creatures, and Quatre shielded himself in a whirl of wind and sand. Quatre lashed out with lightning arcing down from the sky, and Surd sent it back at him. Quatre became Sandrock, meeting Surd as his own mobile suit and driving him back. Surd vanished and reappeared at his feet, causing even the stalwart Gundanium to rust at his poisonous touch.

How long they fought was difficult to calculate. But neither seemed able to gain advantage, and eventually they faced one another as themselves again.

"My patience with you grows short," Surd threatened, angry at his failure to defeat this mere boy.

"And my patience continues," Quatre responded serenely.

"You are not trying to beat me," Surd realized. "You are simply containing me that your friends may finish this for you!"

Quatre's shark smile was back, broad and dangerous. "Of course. And you cannot leave. If you try to return to yourself, to turn your ZERO to any opponent but me, I will _crush_ you."

He watched with great amusement as Surd's eyes flicked back and forth quickly, as though reading words only he could see written on the air. Quatre's ZERO told him that Surd was accessing his own ZERO and finding that his lack of attention had earned him quite a few failures. Quatre allowed him a moment of distraction.

Then he hurled a fireball at him without warning, blasting him off his feet.

"You are inexperienced," Quatre said with simple truth. "You cannot put your thoughts in two places and you cannot coordinate the forces of your ZERO and yourself without concentration. If you wish to act against my friends, you cannot watch me. And I will not allow you to leave."

Surd grinned maniacally. Then his form began to dissolve like oil into the sands. His voice echoed through the air.

"You are nothing. You are weak! You could destroy me and you refuse! Do you really believe you can command _me_?"

Quatre threw his head back and laughed, cold and amused. Then he leaned towards Surd and cupped his hands.

Surd found himself not only once again in the form of his avatar, but literally in the palm of the blond's hands. He looked around in fearful surprise, then attempted to dissipate once more, only to feel pressure force him into his solid shape. He stared at the burning blue-green gaze that was fixed on him through the pair of goggles his avatar wore.

"Your ZERO is certainly improved by what it took from my cognitive patterns," Quatre said conversationally, "but what it gained from me is less than my true self. If you were better than you are, you would understand the difference a willing participant makes, the strength that comes from a heart and mind united with the desire to protect. Your ZERO is just a program. Mine has a _purpose_."

His face split into another smile, this one almost soft. "But if you were better than you are, we wouldn't be here."

Surd howled something inarticulate and gathered himself to strike. But Quatre simply closed his hands as a cage around him.

"I can see your ZERO, you know. In more practical terms, your program simply doesn't have the power mine does. You have a good number of computers, but I have exponentially more processors and servers behind me. My mind is spread throughout the Earth Sphere. I am _everywhere_. There's no corner you can hide in and no place your ZERO can retreat to. I am hunting down every line of its code even now."

Quatre looked up to the sky and felt the sand beneath his feet and read in the grains of it and in the clouds the perfect victory open to him.

And he decided to take it even farther.

 

-==OOO==-

 

"Dad, what are you doing?" Jonny asked.

He and Wufei had stopped just over the threshold of Surd's room in surprise. They had expected many things, but not this.

"What…does it look like?" Benton huffed. He yanked at a bundle of cords connecting one bank of servers to another. "I'm building a nuclear submarine. You're smarter than that, son." His face smiled even though the expression was tight.

"What is your status? You are injured," Wufei looked at him sharply, not deigning to acknowledge the sarcasm.

There was no denying the singed clothing, the awful smell of burned flesh, and a long bleeding stripe that went from Benton's left shoulder down his back almost to his hip. There were marks of burns on his hands and face as well. It was obvious he was in a great deal of pain, but also too focused or too proud to let himself consider it.

"Surd had a surprise," he pointed upwards and drew their eyes to a half-recessed beam weapon mounted in the ceiling. "He thought he could fry me alive. But he only got in one or two shots before he stopped. He hasn't been moving at all since, or talking, and believe me, that is a relief."

Wufei took a graceful running leap and neatly cut the small gun down, letting it crash without a second look. His eyes were drawn to a monitor showing a colony off the L3 cluster.

"What's this?"

"Surd started venting the atmosphere," Benton turned back to his task. "I stopped him momentarily, but I guess he never got back to it."

"Zero Four," Jonny's eyes widened. "He's stopping Surd from inside."

"Obviously," Wufei gave him an absolutely disgusted, withering look. "That was his plan. Now, get to work. Even if Zero Four has things well in hand, the sooner we disconnect our enemy from any means to help himself, the more we reduce the risk to anyone else."

"Jonny, you take over here. Just pull it all out," Benton rubbed a sleeve against his forehead, cringing slightly at the movement. "Agent Chang, if you would assist me in detaching Surd from this equipment, I think we can do it without killing him."

"Pity," Wufei said, but he sheathed his sword and stepped up to the dais.

"What about Operation Meteor?" Jonny asked, yanking. "I thought you said everyone had to die…"

"Well," Wufei huffed as he pulled at a panel covering a part of Surd's motionless torso. He rubbed the side of his nose and coughed awkwardly.

"Yes, we did say that. But there's a reason we abandoned that thinking once before, after all."


	34. Reconvening

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, the battle may be quieted, but the story is far from over. There's quite a few loose ends in play yet, and I'll set a few of them to rights before the true end.
> 
> Enjoy!

Jessie felt as if she were being tossed in a storm from the speed of things happening around her. After the explosion that eliminated the asteroid that had been Rage's base, Rashid had directed their craft to L1. Once there, the Preventers shuttle they had used was docked in a hangar alongside another identical shuttle – the one Dr Quest, Jonny, and Wufei had taken. She emerged with Hadji in time to see the other Maganac shuttle unloading its many passengers nearby into the waiting arms of a huge Preventers force.

It was really the first time Jessie had seen Preventers agents in action under the supervision of the Gundam pilots. The minute Trowa and Duo emerged from their shuttle, the former began asking for status reports and the latter started bellowing orders. Jessie and Hadji had been led to believe that the agents were about as competent as preteens, but they were surprised at the efficiency and calm skill with which the "green" recruits took the civilians from the asteroid into protective custody, rattled off the information regarding Surd and his ZERO, and otherwise seemed thoroughly reliable.

"Either our guys have really high standards or we missed something," she said quietly to Hadji.

"Or perhaps a bit of both." He grinned at her.

"Attention!"

Wufei's voice cut through the organized chaos with a sharpness that brought everything to a halt. Moments later he appeared, striding through waves of agents who parted before him like the Red Sea. And that fact that Wufei was still several years younger than most of the recruits did nothing to diminish him. His chin was up and his eyes were flashing. When he reached Trowa and Duo he stared at them for a burning second before turning back to the hangar at large.

"Beta squadron, deliver the civilians to headquarters for debriefing," he waved at the small huddle of people the Maganacs had pulled off the asteroid. "Gamma squadron is still finishing their last sweep of Surd's base. When they return, put them in direct contact with Une."

"Agent Chang," Rashid stepped forward. "I have orders from Master Quatre for you…"

"Yes, I know all about his orders. Deltas! What are you doing?" he looked across at where a group of half a dozen agents were swarming around a door that had just opened at the other end of the hangar. At his yell, they froze and turned to him slowly, a universal sign of guilt. "Get to your posts at once!"

"You'd think they'd never met anybody famous before," Duo smirked.

"Not that you count, Maxwell."

"You wound me, Wuf-Wuf!" the braided ex-pilot dramatically clutched at his chest as though stabbed.

"I will if you're not careful." Wufei turned back to Jessie and Hadji. "It looks worse than it is. They're both fine. They both acted with honor today. You can be proud."

Navigating through the clump of Delta agents, Dr Quest was leaning on a hospital-issue cane, an arm braced around Jonny's shoulders. Hadji was moving before Jessie had absorbed the implications of Wufei's words, half-sprinting across the room. She followed quickly.

"I'm all right, son," Dr Quest said even before Hadji had come to a halt before him. "Surd had a few surprises waiting for us, but nothing time and rest won't heal."

"Dad decided the best way to deal with Surd was to take a laser to the back," Jonny grimaced. "No, seriously, the Preventers doctor says it wasn't too bad and already bandaged it up."

"I feel like a mummy," Benton grimaced. "I don't need the cane to move as much as to keep my balance all wrapped up like a present." But the lines around his eyes spoke of pain he was refusing to acknowledge and it weighed in the air between them.

"Are you two okay?" Jonny peered closely at Jessie and Hadji.

"We're fine," she answered. "Barely a scratch." Then she grinned in slightly hysterical relief. "But dad is so going to yell at you for getting hurt without him there, Dr Quest!"

"Oh no! You three will protect me, won't you?" he widened his eyes comically.

A look passed between Jonny and Hadji, intense and meaningful, and Jonny smiled. "Sure we will, dad."

But he eased himself out from under his father's arm, and Hadji took his place. Jonny snatched up the cane and propped himself on the other side. Better balanced, Dr Quest straightened up, supported by two of the strongest men he knew. He squeezed Hadji's shoulder under his grip and his adopted son relaxed fractionally at the reassurance.

"Feel free to take all day," came Duo's voice, "but if you four don't hurry up, somebody will probably come looking for us."

"Come looking for us?" Jessie repeated as she led the way back to the three Gundam pilots.

"Quatre wants us on L4," Trowa answered. "Apparently we're behind schedule." He tipped his head towards Rashid.

"Winner has no sense of how much work there is to do after a mission of this magnitude," Wufei grumbled. "We cannot simply leave these agents to handle things themselves."

"That's precisely what you can do, Agent Chang," Dr Quest said firmly. "I believe Quatre knows all about coordinating large numbers of people. Besides, he must have a reason for wanting us on L4."

Wufei opened his mouth, then closed it again with a glare. He turned away and shouted to a few Preventers to send them scurrying on a last set of assignments before he began walking towards the Maganac shuttle without even looking back.

"Don't mind him," Trowa said. "He's on edge because we haven't been able to reach Quatre yet."

"He's still in ZERO?" Jonny asked. Trowa shrugged.

"Have faith in Master Quatre," Rashid put in. "He gave us our orders to meet him at his residence on L4. He was prepared for this, and he will not disappoint us as long as we do not disappoint him."

So most of the Quest family (lacking only Race and Bandit) joined three ex-Gundam pilots, Rashid, and what appeared to be most of the Maganac force on their shuttle making their way to L4. It was a quiet ride, for all that it took a few hours to make the journey, plus close to an hour navigating a strange network of passageways inside L4. Rashid explained that many of the wealthy people or large corporations had their own hangars and docking areas for private crafts, and WEI had more than a few, but they were heading for the most private of all – the one connected directly to the Winner home.

At last they piled out of the shuttle into a hangar somewhat similar to the one they'd been using on L2, but infinitely more advanced, not to mention prettier. It was more like emerging into the inside of a seashell, smooth and warm and refined, than a place where repair and maintenance might happen. Even though this was obviously still a working repair dock.

At the other end of the large space, the two Gundams stood proudly, access hatches open. Gathered around the base of Wing Zero were the remaining Maganacs, talking amongst themselves.

"Heero!" Duo called. "Cat still not comin' out yet?"

The Japanese pilot turned from within the knot of Maganacs and narrowed his eyes as the others approached. "No."

"Is he okay?" Jessie looked worriedly at Trowa, who nodded.

"He seems fine from what I can feel. No distress or pain. It's more like…he's just really, really distracted."

"Maybe we should attempt to pull him out," Wufei said, peering upwards. "Winner can handle this ZERO, but it won't scramble his brains, either, if we shut it down. It seems odd that he has not deactivated it given that Surd has been disconnected for hours. Everything of consequence has ended, so there is no obvious reason for him to remain."

"How do we call him out of it, then?" Duo wanted to know.

The four pilots began discussing various possibilities, and Hadji was about to offer his help as well when he caught a gleam in Jonny's eyes. Dr Quest had gratefully taken a chair offered by one of the Maganacs, so the pair of them could slip away largely unnoticed, or, at least, if they were noticed they were quickly dismissed. Jessie followed them wonderingly to one side.

"You have an idea," Hadji said in an undertone to his best friend.

"Yup. And I wanna try it. Jess, can you keep those guys from killing me?"

"Um. Sure?" she raised an eyebrow at him. "I mean, no, but I can talk fast."

"Okay. I'm going up there. Hadj, give me a boost." He bounced in the light gravity until his heels were in Hadji's cupped hands. On a count of three, they both pushed off, Jonny exploding upwards in a perfect throw.

"What is he doing?" Jessie asked.

"I am not sure I want to know. But if I dare to anticipate Jonny, it is going to be both unexpected and totally typical in its straightforwardness."

Just as Jonny hit the open chest-hatch of Wing Zero, he felt all eyes on him. He refused to turn around because if he caught four death-glares from four Gundam pilots he might start to second-guess himself.

Inside the cockpit, lights flashed over a dozen screens and control panels; there was too much for Jonny to try to identify or comprehend any of it. In the seat before him, he couldn't see Quatre's face through the darkness of the visor reflecting the lights around him, but he could see that Quatre's breathing was even and relaxed, and his hands were just resting rather than clutching the controls. He tipped his head at the wire that ran from something in the cockpit to Quatre's watch, but shook it off.

Jonny took a deep breath and made sure he was at least double arm's length from the pilot, just in case.

" _QUATRE RABERBA WINNER_!"

The effect was immediate. Jonny's roar was just starting to echo in the rest of the hangar when Quatre bounced in his seat as though he'd been startled from sleep. The lights in the cockpit winked out and Quatre pulled the helmet off, shaking his head a little dazedly. He blinked wide, half-focused eyes, and the goggles he had obviously worn for sentimental reasons inside the helmet drooped askew over one ear.

"Sorry. I must have lost track of time," he said sheepishly.

Jonny started to laugh. He laughed so hard he slipped from his perch (where he'd placed himself far enough back that if Quatre had come up swinging he'd have time to dodge – maybe) and tumbled head over heels a few times in the light gravity. But he wasn't worried.

And indeed, two sets of arms broke his fall easily, and he fell giggling into Jessie and Hadji who were staring at him and fighting not to laugh themselves.

" _That_ was your whole plan. To yell at him?" Jessie tried to keep her face severe and failed.

"Yup. It usually works on you, Hadj," he shrugged between bursts of laughing.

"That it does, my friend. And small wonder why. I do believe you have woken the entire L4 cluster," Hadji managed to say solemnly.

"Besides, I thought we could use a break from all the mystical mojo," Jonny managed to get his feet under him. "Why go through all that meditation and psychic stuff when I could just yell?"

"Fair enough," and that was Quatre's voice. He let himself down from Wing Zero looking almost completely unruffled, his fingers trailing on the Gundam before turning more fully to the crowd. As the Maganacs let out a cry, Quatre hoisted the goggles and grinned. That seemed to be a signal to them, and they began clapping one another on the back and dispersing, already chattering about the successful mission and the food that was probably waiting for them. Quatre exchanged a few quick greetings as he stepped forward.

"Nice work, Dr Quest," he said, nodding politely at the man but gesturing for him to sit when the phenomenologist would have stood to meet him. "I wasn't quick enough to stop the incursion on L3 but you bought me time to insert myself perfectly." He was about to move to speak to Rashid when he was pulled into a hug.

"Man, Cattie, you and your crazy plans! You turned your brain into a big computer to beat a big computer with a stupid brain! How'd you know it'd work?" Duo hung an arm around him with a grin.

"Because I was ready for it. Between ZERO, Horus, Wing Zero, all of you, and my gift, Surd never stood a chance," he smiled back.

"Why didn't you tell us you were gonna do that, though? That was a great plan!"

"Well," Quatre ducked an uber-death-glare from Heero and a normal death-glare from Wufei as he shrugged, "I didn't think everybody would like it very much. It wasn't that I was worried about going into ZERO so much as I didn't know what the impact on you would be. I needed you to be Shinigami to deal with Rage's base, and if you'd been worrying about me you wouldn't have been you. I needed Wufei to focus on being mad at Surd and not me. I needed Heero to be himself in the Tallgeese."

"We could have done that and still been in on it," Trowa said very, very softly.

"I know," and Quatre met his eyes gently, "but this was better. Trust me."

"Always."

They stared at one another. Duo slid away from his friend's side almost invisibly, retreating towards the Quests. Trowa regarded Quatre steadily, and in unison they slowly approached one another until they were as close as if in an embrace, but not touching at all.

"Quatre," Trowa put many thoughts and feelings into the sound of it.

"I'm all right," Quatre said softly, never looking away from the intense green gaze that stared at him. "We're all right, all of us."

Finally Trowa reached forward, curling his fingers into the soft blond hair at the base of Quatre's head and he tugged until their foreheads met. He breathed in deeply, almost shakily, and again moving as one they each unconsciously slid a hand over their respective chests, pressing into the emotion there that threatened to swallow them both. The connection that had been silent for many hours, too many, and dangerous at that.

Then Quatre leaned up and angled his face until his left cheek was pressed against Trowa's right.

"It's all right, love. It's all right."

Something in the set of Trowa's shoulders, something in the way Quatre was breathing, something suddenly settled and everything looked _right_ again.

The moment was broken by a soft _thump_.

"So _that's_ what it was we sensed when we were transporting the Gundams to L2! What was the point in making it so mysterious? You couldn't have just said?" Wufei glared angrily at Heero, who was blinking in surprise at where he had been smacked by the sheath of Wufei's blade.

"Geez. I so want one of those," Duo smirked, noting the redness spreading across the faces of Trowa and Quatre both and refusing to admit to a certain heat about his own ears at what was leaking to him across Quatre's space heart. "If you could bottle that you'd make a fortune."

"Maybe someday. Not the bottling, of course," Dr Quest smiled benevolently at him. "Perhaps someday you will find a love of your own." Then he chuckled once, but shook his head and repeated, "Perhaps someday."

"You obviously know something we do not," Hadji pointed out.

"A father's prerogative."

While the trio began badgering Dr Quest to reveal his thinking, Wufei and Heero approached Trowa and Quatre and Duo finished the circle.

"You didn't tell us your plan because you knew we'd never go along with it," Wufei said without preamble.

"Maybe, but only in part. It was more because I couldn't risk being wrong about anything. This," and Quatre made a motion in the air that all four understood to mean their new and enhanced connection, "is still unpredictable to me. I wasn't sure how things would go and I didn't want to run any unnecessary risks. I had a backup plan to seal Surd in Horus, but I didn't know exactly what that would do to him or me. And there wasn't room for me to miscalculate. I never underestimated how much the plan would upset you, even if you admitted that it was necessary. I overestimated Surd, though," and his eyes lit up with amusement.

Wufei snorted, and Trowa smiled secretly at whatever he sensed in Quatre through their closeness; Heero shrugged and said, "Well, obviously. He always was an unworthy opponent."

"Did you pound him into the ground?" Duo wanted to know.

"If the ramblings of his near-catatonic state when we pulled him out is any indication, he's lucky to have the capacity for thought at all," Wufei answered. "Assuming he ever had it to begin with." He levied his glare at Quatre again. "But I still do not approve of your methods. Do you know how much work you would have created had something gone wrong?"

"I filed all your Preventers reports for you already," Quatre said helpfully. "I was in ZERO and Horus anyway and it seemed the easiest thing to do. I got caught up on a bunch of work and other stuff, too."

Wufei snorted again, but this time more like a huff of laughter.

"You didn't kill Surd." Trowa tipped his head to look at the Chinese agent with an unreadable face.

"No, we didn't. It wasn't necessary." Wufei folded his arms. "But Rage is dead?"

"Yes."

"Then the mission is a success." Heero dismissed them both, still leveling an angry look at Quatre.

"Hee-chan, can you let up with the evil glare?" Duo poked his arm. "Sheesh. Cat's fine, we're all fine, the bad guys are toast, and our little brainiac proved he could out-think even the great Wu-Foo over there."

"Maxwell!"

"Quatre." Heero's face was granite, his dark eyes sharp. Quatre met his gaze evenly, raising his chin proudly. Then Heero ducked his head very slightly. "Good work."

 

-==OOO==-

 

"How big _is_ this place?" Jonny exclaimed, looking around whichever section of the mansion they were in now.

"To be honest, I don't know," Quatre confessed sheepishly. "Big enough to house me and all my sisters and we never really noticed each other when we were all here for family gatherings. Big enough to hold the whole Maganac force and most of their families before we had to start doubling up." He blushed slightly as he admitted, "I still get lost here sometimes. The only person who knows the whole thing, well, besides the housekeepers, is Heero."

"Really?" Jessie looked at him. He shrugged noncommittally.

"It's always prudent to know the precise layout of any place you might be attacked."

"Don't mind his paranoia," Wufei said with a superior smirk. "This is also one of the most secured locations in the Earth Sphere. The only person I know who has ever breached the first level of security is Maxwell, and even then he got caught."

"What can I say?" he grinned, folding his hands behind his head, "I was bored. Testing Cat's security is always fun!"

"Anyway," Quatre opened a door onto a broad hallway. "This is the wing we use the most. My room is that one," he pointed at a golden door to the right. "Trowa used to have the room with the red door, but one of you can take it now. The green door is Wufei's, black is Duo, and white is Heero."

"The colors of your Gundams," Benton nodded in understanding.

"We started coding them that way in all my places just so we always knew which rooms were whose and didn't have to relearn them all the time; they're all kind of specific to each person. The brown one is Rashid's, and the rest of the Maganacs are throughout the next two floors down. The grey, yellow, orange, and blue are open to whoever wants them," Quatre explained.

"I think you will most appreciate my room, Jessie," Trowa said softly. At his nod, she opened the door and peeked in. For all that the door was red, the room was decorated in cool greens and blues, with a thick charcoal coverlet on the big bed. All the art in the room suggested birds and big cats.

She beamed. "Totally calling this one!"

Peeking through each, Hadji opted for the orange room, whose tropical theme he found refreshing, Jonny claimed blue with its Asian décor of silver dragons, and Dr Quest selected yellow, which reminded him of an English study more than a bedroom. Grey, left for Race, was appropriately outfitted with the look of a rustic cabin. They were permitted to investigate Quatre's room as well, which was, naturally, Arabian in every particular, with a strong emphasis on lions and eagles. Rashid claimed his room was humble and uninteresting, which, for some unknown reason, made Duo nearly choke himself with a repressed chuckle. But none of the other ex-pilots invited the Quests into their spaces.

And, by now, nobody batted an eye at their privacy.

"So, if I may ask," Hadji began after everyone had begun stowing their belongings (the Quests were surprised to find their things, even the Strataquest, had been relocated to L4 for them), "what is it exactly that we are doing here?"

"First we need to fix Race," Dr Quest said firmly. Quatre nodded.

"Yes. And besides being secure and comfortable, this is where I kept all the materials Wufei ever gave me when we were working on my empathy. Probably the best library in the Earth Sphere on psychic manipulation is in my office downstairs. This gives us a good place to take the necessary amount of time to set things to rights for him."

"But that is not your only reason. We could well have done that at Rock Island or even the Quest compound," Hadji raised an eyebrow. "Why here?"

"You got Cat figured out, huh?" Duo smiled and clapped him on the back. "Like I said before, you're all right, Tubs."

"Because he promised the Maganacs that we would thank them all properly for their help in this mission," Trowa answered. "Of all his facilities, this is the best suited to such an...event."

"You mean we're going to have a party!" Jonny whooped.

"When my dad can join us," Jessie said decisively.


	35. Downtime

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this one's a bit short. Sorry, you guys. The next one will make up for it. Only a few more to go.
> 
> Enjoy!

Several days passed and though there were no more attacks or battles to be fought, no one was idle. Race had been brought from L2 and installed in his bedroom, and Quatre worked with him and Dr Quest (when the latter was not resting as he recovered from his injuries) for hours on end to try to correct the damage done by Surd's ZERO System, and with every passing session Quatre and Dr Quest became more hopeful. The Quest rule of everyone meeting for meals was strictly upheld (excepting Race, who could not yet be trusted not to trigger himself around his daughter), and Quatre made certain to assure his friends that progress was being made.

Rashid and the Maganacs seemed to have an endless list of tasks to accomplish, from preparing for the celebration to coordinating Quatre's work with WEI so he could be undisturbed. Now and again Trowa and Wufei would assist in serving as mediator between Quatre and his sisters or Preventers respectively, and one time Heero hacked the WEI system to send a flurry of emails masquerading as Quatre himself so the Arab could focus on Race unmolested.

But mostly those not involved in the Maganacs' planning or Race's rehabilitation found ways to amuse themselves.

Quatre had given permission for everyone to explore the Winner mansion as much as they wished, for there was little he feared to leave in any of their hands now. The Quest trio, with Bandit happily trotting beside them, therefore took it upon themselves to try to uncover every single interesting facet of the place with single-minded dedication. Duo often accompanied them, enjoying helping them break into locked rooms or evade official-looking housekeepers and staff. On the second day, however, they wandered so far and took so many unexpected turns that not one of them could quite seem to locate the way back to the part of the house they knew. It would have resulted in a highly embarrassing call to Trowa or Heero to rescue them (or a long walk outside) but for Duo's imagination.

Which is how extremely twangy banjo music, with the braided ex-pilot singing his own improvised lyrics (mainly about a cowboy named "Wu-Face"), wound up being broadcast throughout the house's communication systems.

It also resulted in Heero and Wufei hunting them down like rabbits and Duo had to run very fast to avoid being clobbered, but the redness of Wufei's face was so worth it. Especially when the most memorable lyrics were repeated over dinner, or, mysteriously, were found as a screen-saver on Wufei's personal computer. He never admitted it, but they all knew that no one but Heero could have hacked the Preventers laptop that quickly and irrevocably.

This started up something of a prank war, with Duo and Jonny mostly focusing on increasingly outrageous stunts while Wufei shouted about impropriety, Jessie and Hadji served as distractions or sources of inspiration for the jokers, and Heero and Trowa acted as completely mercenary agents, helping whichever side asked them, sometimes both at once.

Which is how Jonny found his room mysteriously redecorated with zombie kittens and his dog adorned with pink rosettes stuck all over his back.

Which is how Jessie came up with a plot to pipe calliope music into whatever room Duo happened to be in at the time, with the occasional break in favor of the newest fad in elevator music – Tuvan throat-singing accompanied by soulless jazz.

Which is how all three of the Quests were duped by Trowa into inadvertently locking themselves in what turned out to be the state-of-the-art mulch and compost processor.

Which is how Heero eagerly accepted the chance for some long-desired revenge of his own and somehow caused both Wufei and Duo to suffer from a day when their hair was irrepressibly curly.

The world felt so very far away in those days. Even the intrusion of WEI or Preventers didn't break through the thick margin the mansion provided from the outside. Within three days, Jessie, Jonny, and Hadji had become entirely at ease with their Gundam friends, and they understood that the same was true of them as much as they were able. Between the pranks and competitions, Duo's smiles and jokes always reached his eyes now, Trowa did not object to Hadji reading in the salon when he was playing his flute, Heero relaxed enough to challenge Jonny to a computer game tournament, and even Wufei stopped calling Jessie "woman."

There was a hole in things still, though, where the Quest family was not quite itself without Race. And with Benton and Quatre so deeply and completely engaged in their work, they were less liable to join in with the others. But still they were upbeat and positive, and both, almost spookily in tandem, always found ways to keep the dinner table alive with laughter when concerns about Race might have dulled the spirit.

It was six days into this unexpected vacation when it finally occurred to the Quests to wonder. They were tossing a basketball back and forth in one of the recreation rooms when Jonny stopped and held it, suddenly still.

"Jonny? Earth to Jonny!" Jessie called.

"Sorry," he shook his head and lobbed her the ball. "Got caught up thinking." Then, before they could ask, he elaborated, "Quatre has to be here, right? He's working on Race. And Trowa's here because Quatre's here. Right?"

"Yes, of course," Hadji tipped his head inquiringly.

"But what about the other three? Don't they, you know, have someplace else to be?"

"Hmm." Jessie began absently dribbling the ball. "It's true that Wufei could probably go back to Preventers any time. I'm sure there's work to get done. And I guess I don't really know what Duo and Heero normally do, but I assume they have something out there to keep them busy when they aren't working with Preventers."

"Then why are they staying with us?" Jonny asked. "I mean, they could always come back for the party later. Why are they here instead?"

"See! I told ya they would figure it out!"

The trio turned to see that they had been joined by Heero, Wufei, and Duo. The former two of which were both making identical "yes now shut up" faces at Duo, who only smiled cheekily in return. The curls of the most recent prank appeared to be gone, but Heero was now sporting a mysteriously blue neck.

"Sorry," Jonny held up his hands. "I didn't mean to pry. It just seemed...weird."

"You are not a fool," Wufei nodded. "In fact, I would be far more concerned if you failed to notice at all."

"Will you tell us why?" Hadji asked. Heero looked at him sharply but Hadji met the intense gaze evenly. After everything they'd seen in the last week or two, anything short of a true death-glare from Heero wasn't enough to phase him even a bit.

The three ex-pilots exchanged glances and shrugged almost in unison.

"Because we like you."

Jessie couldn't help it – her jaw dropped at the matter-of-fact words from Heero. He actually smiled at her obvious surprise.

"Look, Cat might need us for all the space heart-y stuff, so that's one reason for us to hang around here," Duo added. "Also, none of us has anywhere really pressing to go since _somebody_ finished all the Preventers reports in record time, and it's been a long time since we could just be, you know, here. Acting like real people and not like killing machines. Having fun for once, even."

"The lives we take are necessary," Wufei put in, "and we still regret them. Do not think us that callous."

"We don't," Jonny said. "I'm a lot more impressed you saved Surd when you didn't have to. I can see why you might need some time away after everything."

"In addition," Heero said, "if we remain here, when Quatre eventually finishes his work with Race Bannon, we will all be present to ensure _he_ takes some time for himself as well."

"I can imagine he would struggle to relax with all the other responsibilities on his shoulders," Jessie nodded.

"But if we hang around, he has an excuse to let loose for a while! Plus that makes four of us who can sic Rashid on anybody who tries to bother him. Not to mention Heero can just hack WEI again if we need it." Duo smiled.

Unexpectedly, Wufei broke from where he'd been leaning against the door-frame throughout the conversation and met the Quests in the center of the room. Even more unexpectedly, he bowed to them.

"Those who are weak should not fight. You have proven that you are not weak, and you have fought your own battles with us. It is deserving of respect." He looked at them intently each in turn. "Jonny Quest, you showed courage and strength when you guarded me in my own weakness in enemy territory, and you led your team to us during our assault on Rage's first base with honor. Hadji Quest, you saved Quatre at great risk to yourself and you put your own ideals aside to ensure the peace, a sacrifice of great worth. Jessie Bannon, I am assured of your own valor in battle, but it is your perseverance against the loss of your father that has earned you the most respect, as there is nothing more important than family."

"Take a vid," Duo said, "because you're never _ever_ gonna hear him say it again."

"That's probably true," the Chinese agent acknowledged.

"We have learned much from you," Hadji straightened his shoulders, "and we owe you a great deal ourselves. As I said just after the hotel hijacking, I am certain we have come to find one another because it is where we needed to be. What we have gained from this puts us in your debt."

"And you saved Katoru," Heero locked his eyes on Hadji's and held them burningly. "For that, you have earned a pass for life from me. From all of us."

"What, just him?" Jessie joked, throwing her laughter into the seriousness.

"Seems kinda unfair," Jonny mused with a smirk.

"Nah. If any of you are ever in trouble, we'll pretty much annihilate whoever went after our buds," Duo said brightly. Heero shrugged noncommittally, neither agreeing nor contesting it, but his shrugs were eloquent enough. Even now, the perfect soldier did not give his allegiance easily.

"And if you abuse it, we will deal with you," Wufei warned, but even though his face was severe there was something in his tone that told them how little he expected that to happen.

"Fair enough," Jonny nodded. "What about dad and Race?"

"Oh, we'll back them up, too," Duo answered. "Especially Cat. In a weird sort of way, Race is a bigger hero than we are in all this."

At the confused looks, Wufei rolled his eyes. "You couldn't be expected to know, I suppose. Who do you think signaled the Wing Zero that Rage had been neutralized so Winner could push us all out of the ZERO System? Once he had cut off the input from Rage, he needed another way of timing it such that he could return us to ourselves before taking on Surd directly. He arranged to have Rashid alert Race, who had been left with a secured connection to Horus and Wing Zero already."

"And if he hadn't sent the signal," Hadji finished, "you all would have stayed locked in ZERO and Quatre wouldn't have been able to focus on stopping Surd in time. All those people on L3 would have died."

"Not to mention Dr Quest," Jessie added with a shiver.

"Even left behind that guy got to show up the terrorists," Duo smirked. "Not a bad deal."

"But I thought he couldn't be trusted with Surd's ZERO stuff in his head?" Jonny asked.

All three shrugged. Heero verbalized it for them, "Quatre knew what he was doing, apparently."

"Speaking of which."

The Quests looked up in surprise to see Trowa leaning casually in the corner of the room. None of the other pilots reacted, though, suggesting they had been aware of him already. He sauntered forward looking rather pleased.

"Quatre says he thinks Race is ready to see Jessie."

If he had hesitated even a little, if he had looked grave, Jessie would have felt her dread return from where she had banished it with Quatre's help days before. But Trowa seemed utterly confident and relaxed and even cheerful. She beamed, tossed the ball she still held in her hands to one side, and started to dash off before glancing back at the others.

"Go ahead, Ace," Jonny smiled. "We'll come along in a bit."

"Perhaps there is hope for subtlety in you after all, my friend," Hadji elbowed him as Jessie vanished.

 

-==OOO==-

 

Jessie skidded to a halt outside the dark oak doors that led to Quatre's office. Dr Quest was waiting for her.

"I see you got the message," he smiled a little wearily. "Before you go in, let me explain a few things. Race has been through a lot with this. He's okay," he quickly reassured her, "but he's tired. We're all tired, I think."

"I understand," she nodded. "Or, I think I do."

"Close enough," he put a hand on her shoulder warmly. "Now, Quatre and I have done as much as we could and a few things we didn't think we could do at all. But there's no guarantees. So when you walk in, it's important for you to give your dad a few minutes before you get too close to him. Just talk to him for a bit. Quatre's going to be right next to him, reading his reaction."

"Dr Quest, what happens if…?" she trailed off, biting the inside of her cheek nervously.

"If we have miscalculated and he triggers, Quatre is ready with a tranquilizer. He'll put Race out before anything goes wrong," he said calmly. "But we wouldn't bring you in if we weren't pretty sure."

"Right," she drew herself up. She could do this. Jessie knew she could do this.

"Ready?"

At Jessie's nod, Benton opened the door and entered first, Jessie following resolutely.

Quatre's office was bright and airy, with big windows looking out over the house and gardens below. It seemed formal enough, but it lacked some of the grandeur of the rest of the house. It looked more comfortable and cheerful than professional or powerful. Across the room, seated on a pair of chairs on the near side of the massive mahogany desk were Quatre and her father. Quatre had a hand on Race's bare forearm, and his head was bowed, eyes closed, concentrating; in his other hand was the familiar tranq gun. But her father was looking at her with wide eyes.

"Hiya Ponchita," he said, his voice sounding upbeat. There was tension in him, though.

"He's afraid," Jessie realized with a start. "He's afraid he'll trigger again and hurt someone."

She took a few steps forward but stayed near Dr Quest as she smiled at him. "Hi dad."

"Are you okay, kiddo? Not hurt from all the adventuring I missed?"

"I'm fine. Not a scratch. Though I didn't think I'd ever get the compost stink out from when we got locked in there," she grimaced.

"I heard about that," his eyes were laughing. "You kids really can't go _anywhere_ without causing some kind of chaos."

"To be fair, Duo started most of it. We just…"

"You just didn't resist too hard when the option to find new definitions for 'trouble' came about, did you?"

"Nope." Jessie found herself grinning at him. It was as though they had seen one another yesterday or this morning, not days ago when he had lunged at his best friend in a blind fury. He seemed completely okay. If anything, her dad seemed more relaxed than she typically found him anywhere but on a beach after a week of time away. Her heart glowed in hope.

"Quatre?" Dr Quest, on the other hand, had not yet relaxed.

"So far, everything seems fine," he answered. "One last test, then." He opened his eyes and looked up. "If this doesn't do it, I think we'll be in the clear."

His eyes drifted shut again and then her father jolted in his seat as if he'd been jabbed with a pin. Quatre lifted his hand from Race's arm and tensed in his seat, watching him sharply.

"Geez! Feels like my brain just got hit by world's tiniest lightning bolt," Race grumbled, rubbing one hand over the hairs standing up on the back of his neck. Then his head swiveled and he stared at Jessie as though seeing her for the first time. She felt her own smile fade as her fears crashed back into her. His expression was so…blank.

A long, anxious moment passed.

Broken by Quatre rising slowly to his feet. He fixed Race with a long, unreadable look before turning away. He stepped right up to Jessie and smiled at her. "We'll give you some time to talk."

Joy and relief flooded into Jessie's face as she turned back to her father, who was also starting to smile again. Neither even noticed Benton and Quatre quietly slipping out, closing the door behind them. Jessie and Race were not much given to emotional displays, but the stress of the last several days was new even to them.

Jessie met her father in the middle of the room and had never been so glad to be hugged.

"I thought we might have lost each other there for a little while," he said softly, his voice rough.

"Maybe," she said. Then she smiled against where her face was smushed into his chest. "But I don't think anybody was going to give up until you were okay again."

"You're probably right." Then, "You're sure you're okay, Jessie?"

"I am now, dad." She felt something on the top of her head that seemed suspiciously wet and she pulled back enough to look up into his face. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I'm okay."

If she'd known him any less well, she'd never have thought he'd shed a tear in relief to know the damage done to his mind and soul was healed, so composed was his face. Thankfully, she did know him that well.


	36. Debriefing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've decided to put these two chapters up at one time – it just seems to flow better. After this update, then, there will be a pair of epilogues and we'll have reached the true end of this story! I don't have plans right now for a sequel, but you never know. I always leave myself a hook or two, just in case.
> 
> This was probably the hardest chapter to write, and I fought with it for weeks. I hope it portrays what I wanted. I'll put some footnotes at the bottom when you need them.
> 
> Enjoy!

When Quatre had said there would be a celebration for everyone once Race could rejoin them, no one had really been able to guess what he had meant. Even Duo and Heero and Wufei admitted they were not privy to his plans, and Trowa was predictably silent on the subject. So, the evening after Race's recovery, when the five Quests received a formal, printed invitation to dinner, they were thoroughly curious.

The invitation came with an actual map to what looked like the largest ballroom in the mansion, but not the only one, and as they made their way at the appointed time, they came upon most of the Maganacs with similar maps. The crowd of men wore their traditional clothing styles, but the materials were better and many of the vests and fez tassels were worked in silk and shining metallic threads.

"No wonder we don't know anything about what's going on," Jessie shook her head as she checked the map again. "This party is being held so far away that it's practically in another colony!"

"What kind of celebration will it be, do you think?" Benton asked Auda politely.

"With Master Quatre? Who knows!" he laughed. "But you're guaranteed at least three things."

The Maganacs overhearing the conversation all shouted in unison: "Food, drink, and a surprise!"

"A surprise?" Hadji asked.

"Master Quatre says all celebrations should give something to those that attend," the one named Assad explained. "When we first completed the Rock Island complex and moved our families in, Master Quatre honored us all with a 'massive housewarming party' as he called it, complete with a box of gifts for each man, woman, and child to welcome them."

"But he never tells anyone his plans," Jamal added. "Rashid usually knows some of the basics, and Master Trowa because he helps to arrange things, but the Master likes to surprise us. Sometimes we get asked to pick up supplies, but they are always in sealed containers."

"Aren't you tempted to peek?" Jonny wanted to know.

"Of course not!" Abdul was scandalized, clapping him on the back. "As if we would ever snoop on Master Quatre!"

"Well, _you_ would," Auda nudged him significantly, "which is why you don't get those assignments anymore."

A colorful, friendly argument broke out between them as they passed through a crystal and silver archway into the foyer that preceded their destination. Heero, Duo, and Wufei were already there, gathered around an enormous wooden door. Wufei wore not his Preventers uniform but a white Chinese _changshan_. Duo was in black as always, but the cut of his outfit was slightly more refined, slightly less punk-priest. Heero wore a dark blue _happi_ over black pants of some kind, the back of the Japanese coat reflecting a pattern of dots stitched in silver that might have been a constellation of stars.

The three looked over the Quests, and Wufei nodded in obvious approval.

Dr Quest wore his grey three-piece suit, the same he had been wearing the morning at the hotel for the formal start of the conference that never was. Race, beside him, had found a black suit of his own, with a signature red tie, of course. Jonny was also in a black suit, but without any tie at all, having proclaimed loudly that since he was friends with Quatre he did not have to throttle his neck in his presence. Jessie wore a gauzy dress that fell to about mid-calf, dark green with golden accents and a gilded comb holding back her hair. Hadji was resplendent in a bronze _sherwani_ , and his turban was adorned with a small red stone. Even Bandit wore a shiny leather collar as he trotted along with his family.

"So we all dressed up?" Jessie asked, eyeing Heero in particular.

"Cat never says we gotta," Duo shrugged, "but when you get an invitation that costs more than, you know, food for a week, it doesn't seem nice to let him down."

A bell sounded and the doors opened, unleashing a wonderful mix of scents – food and flowers and incense all blowing hotly into the corridor. The room was warm and bright, and no one could help being drawn forward.

It was normally a large ballroom, with crystal chandeliers twinkling above and many mirrored walls to show off the dancers as they spun across the shiny floor. These features were still visible, but most had been covered in long swaths of colored silks. The room had been transformed into something out of one of Scheherazade's legendary tales. Hundreds of candles winked from sconces and stood in piles upon towering metal pillars, bathing the room in a bright, soft glow. The floor was layered in plush carpets of deep colors and intricate patterns. Jewels and sparkling stones dangled in long strings from the ceiling and gathered with the swooshes of material to send bright winking colors flickering across the room with the dancing flames. And a long, low table took up the nearer half of the room, strewn with food from a dozen different cultures, mixed until the patchwork of culinary options was as bright and rich as the swirls on the carpets. Bright, puffy cushions lined the table, obviously awaiting them.

Before anyone could even move from the end of the room, however, a flurry of something high above caught everyone's attention.

Like a feather twisting in the wind, a figure flipped and soared through the air to land in front of the column of guests, dropping lightly in a perfect bow. It was Trowa, wearing an Albanian x _haqete_ in a bright red brocade with ballooning white pants and no shirt at all. He quirked an eyebrow from his deep bow before intoning with a touch of hidden laughter behind his voice.

"You are welcomed to this celebration in honor of your bravery, loyalty, and sacrifice. Please be seated."

Duo started to giggle, which set off some of the Maganacs, which got Jonny and Jessie going, and even Race had to clamp down his jaw to keep from any undignified snorting. Wufei scowled at everyone overtaken from the solemnity of it and bowed in return.

"Thank you for your hospitality," he said before striding to the table and claiming a cushion. There was then a slightly less-than-decorous move after him, with some people playfully snatching cushions and others crowding them out of order. Two spots were by general consent left unclaimed – one at the head of the table, and one by its side, as Trowa had not moved yet from the doorway. Duo plopped down happily next to the seat reserved for Quatre across from Trowa, with Heero and Wufei flanking them, the Quests next in some configuration, and the Maganacs leaving the end of the table free for Rashid.

Without any warning, the lights began to dim as dark curtains fell from some concealed place to hide the many burning candles. A few, those at the table and nearest the door, remained, but the rest of the room was soon shrouded in gloom. The assembled group fell quiet as a sound as soft as breathing began to slip through the shadows. It was music, slow at first, a meandering, wandering tune that grew in intensity and intricacy with every beat. The melody was played by a violin, but it was joined after a bit by tinkling cymbals and then pulsing drums and a flute and gongs and other instruments that carried the gentle theme into a crashing, swelling wave. It was almost hypnotic.

A tiny light glowed somewhere in the room beyond, like a floating candle in the darkness. But the light itself was no candle – it was simply a point of brightness like a single star in the sky. It seemed to move closer and closer to the table before coming to a halt. Then the tiny point of light began to grow in size, spinning lazily as it did so.

The music echoed the light's movement, bright and earnest, spinning faster and faster, until with a joyful burst the glowing ball exploded into a thousand tiny points of light that spread throughout the darkened room like water droplets. The violin rocked the many little stars as they began to dance. But there was a pattern emerging. At first the lights seemed to slide into lines like waves, but these rose and fell and formed words glowing in the very air.

> _If I fail any day to render thee due thanks,_  
>  Tell me for whom I have composed my verse and prose.  
> Thou hast loaded me with favours unsolicited,  
> Bestowed without delay on thy part, or excuse.  
> How then should I abstain from praising thee as thou deservest,  
> And lauding thee both with my heart and voice?  
> Nay, I will thank thee for the benefits conferred upon me:  
> They are light upon my tongue, though weighty to my back. 

With a flourish of the violin, the words broke apart and the lights scattered. A horn and flute sounded a cry like a wail in the night, and the music took a darker turn. It was no less intense, but now it was deep and with each pulse became more solemn. The lights had shifted in color to a nearly-invisible indigo. The darkness between them reformed until it outlined a new verse.

> _Tell whoso hath sorrow_  
>  Grief never shall last.  
> E'en as joy hath no morrow  
> So woe shall go past.

The indigo spots that glowed shifted to a warmer purple, then to the dusky colors of the near-dawn. No longer individual points of light, now the air was alive with clouds, soft and bright as they grew pinker and lighter. Across the clouds, a single sunbeam traced new words.

> _For others these hardships and labors I bear,_  
>  And theirs is the pleasure and mine is the care,  
> As the bleacher who blacketh his brow in the sun  
> To whiten the raiment which other men wear. 

The violin began to race like the wind before the dawn, and the room began to glow in brightness. The clouds became a waterfall, a river of light that spun and flowed through the air, swift and clear. Many streams sprang from the corners of the room and pooled together in a basin of calm. Tiny shapes in the water formed a verse that dissolved once more so quickly it might have been imagined.

> _None but the good a secret keep,_  
>  And good men keep it unrevealed.  
> It is to me a well-shut house  
> With keyless locks and door ensealed.

The music, which had bubbled so joyfully, though secretively, now slowed into its original melody, warm and sincere and heartfelt. There were almost words in the expression of the violin, words of a language spoken by the soul. The rivers dissolved into a flight of birds of every color in the rainbow. Soaring and dipping and fluttering, they were a riot of energy and joy, a wild contrast to the softening music. And where the birds flew, they left words in their wake.

> _Your friend is your needs answered._  
>  He is your field which you sow with love and reap with thanksgiving.  
> And he is your board and your fireside. 
> 
> _For you come to him with your hunger, and you seek him for peace._  
>  When your friend speaks his mind you fear not the "nay" in your own mind, nor do you withhold the "ay."  
> And when he is silent your heart ceases not to listen to his heart;  
> For without words, in friendship, all thoughts, all desires, all expectations are born and shared, with joy that is unacclaimed. 
> 
> _When you part from your friend, you grieve not;  
>  For that which you love most in him may be clearer in his absence, as the mountain to the climber is clearer from the plain. _
> 
> _And let there be no purpose in friendship save the deepening of the spirit._  
>  For love that seeks aught but the disclosure of its own mystery is not love but a net cast forth:  
> And only the unprofitable is caught. 
> 
> _And let your best be for your friend._  
>  If he must know the ebb of your tide, let him know its flood also.  
> For what is your friend that you should seek him with hours to kill?  
> Seek him always with hours to live.  
> For it is his to fill your need, but not your emptiness.  
> And in the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures. 
> 
> _For in the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed._

The softest trill of the violin led to silence and the darkened room was still once more as the last words faded away. The hangings that had descended to hide the candlelight now lifted, returning the room to its previous splendor. But it was changed.

As those gathered around the table came back to themselves, some were surprised to find wetness on their faces, but perhaps moreso at the wetness evident from others. Duo had entwined an arm with Heero's, and the normally-stoic man was returning the grip fiercely. Trowa and Wufei sat shoulder-to-shoulder, seemingly holding one another up and looking at no one. Jessie found herself tucked under her father's arm, smiling a watery smile at where Jonny and Hadji were sharing a look of so much understanding and communion, Dr Quest watching them proudly. Rashid sat still as a mountain, his beard suspiciously wet though his face showed no crack in its composure, but many of the other Maganacs had arms draped around shoulders or leaned together in camaraderie.

No one seemed to want to speak, to break the moment, but it couldn't be helped. Even moments don't last forever. Hadji let out a long breath and spoke in a low voice.

"With all the resources of the Earth Sphere to choose from, I believe we have just received the most meaningful gift I have ever known."

"I feel like...I've seen the birth of a star," Dr Quest said. "Or like I am the first person to stumble from the brush to find the Grand Canyon."

"But it's not Quatre's empathy," Race looked up. "I know it isn't." He made a small wry face that spoke of his recent experience.

"No. It's what was inside us," Hadji traded a glance with his brother. "Quatre brings people to themselves."

"But it only works if there's something in you already," Jessie spoke up. "We all have the same heart. We didn't need him to change us, just to show us." She nudged her father slightly.

"What do you guys think?" Jonny turned towards the other pilots, then started in surprise. Heero, Duo, Wufei, and Trowa had not moved at all. They sat, still together, but their eyes had closed. Each bore a certain expression that suggested something rarely seen in any of them – peace.

And seated in the last spot at the table was Quatre, who had appeared with no fanfare at all, and was smiling joyfully.

Quatre was dressed like an Arabian prince. Though he wore no overt wealth like jewels or gold, he would not have been out of place in a palace. His white _entari_ and _şalvar_ were silk, and the _kaftan_ was richly, deeply embroidered in sunset colors. Even as he sat on the thick cushion, the folds of the robe swirled around him regally. But it was the look of his face and the light in his eyes that made him shine.

Jonny turned back waiting for the expected cry of "Master Quatre!" to go up along the table as it had every other time the Maganacs had laid eyes on him. But not one of the men seemed likely to shout. They all sat quietly, waiting. At some unseen signal, every Maganac at the table bowed his head, and Rashid made a formal bow wordlessly. Quatre smiled even more brightly before folding both hands on the table and bowing in return until his forehead touched his fingers. When he rose, the spell seemed to break completely.

Of course, Duo had a lot to do with that.

"Hey, Wee-Wee, pass that tray of tasty-looking stuff over here," Duo held out his hands beseechingly.

Wufei started to get to his feet, face contorted in irritation, but Heero shook his head. Then he did something very fast and somehow Duo's cushion was gone, he was upside-down, and his foot was caught in his own braid.

After that, chaos and laughter reigned.

Food vanished quickly as everyone fell upon the untouched trays and platters and heaps. No amount of scowling from more serious-minded of their number could keep the playful from tossing bits of food about "as an accelerated means of delivering it," whether or not it had been requested. Drink flowed, and they feasted and indulged to their hearts' content. Music in the background acquired made-up lyrics and singing, which became increasingly silly as time wore on.

Then, somehow, Auda got ahold of the remote Quatre was using to control the music and turned the volume up while switching it to an upbeat song and within moments half the Maganacs were on their feet dancing, the rest not far behind. Race and Jonny and Duo wasted no time and joined them at once, with Jessie pulled up to spin around the room by Rashid himself. Heero and Wufei initiated some sort of dancing competition, of which only they understood the rules, that led to a great deal of hooting and shouting from the crowd as they tried to outdo one another. Quatre was drawn into Trowa's arms and they laughingly weaved between others, Trowa now and again throwing Quatre into the air like an acrobat; once, he landed not in the embrace of his beloved, but instead was caught by Race, who laughed even harder at four pilots who had turned to him in momentary alarm. Hadji and Dr Quest remained seated only for so long before others, alight with humor, pulled them into the crowd of merrymakers. Bandit chased whoever seemed worth chasing, and was even scooped up for a few dances of his own.

Time passed without remark as the assembled friends let themselves go. Though their revels eventually slowed down, many returning to the abandoned table to pick over it for remaining delicacies and waxing philosophic as the mood took them, others grouped off in small clumps. At one point when Quatre was standing off by himself, looking pleased, Jonny sidled up.

"This was amazing. Thank you," he said. "I don't even know how to ask how you did it."

"It's really just an advanced version of the holographic technology we already use for briefings and other things, just...put to a better purpose. It was the least I could do for everyone after the last weeks," he answered. "We learned a long time ago that if we don't take the time to experience peace, it's easy for us to forget why we fight for it."

"I can believe it," Jonny nodded. "I think it's what everybody needed, too."

"Jonny, are you all right?" Quatre looked at him closely. "You're the only one who went into ZERO when I wasn't there to lead you out again. You didn't ask for help and I didn't want to impose, but..."

"Quatre, if I'd needed your help, and if we had had the time, I'd have come to you," he said good-naturedly. "I can't say it was fun. It was probably the worst I've ever felt in my life. But, somehow it didn't do to me what it did to Race and Heero."

"Probably because you weren't in there long," Quatre replied. "I'm not denigrating your courage. But once they realized you weren't me, they pulled you out after just a few minutes."

"Longest minutes of my life," he shivered. Quatre put a hand on his arm.

"I know. And the truth is, there are soldiers who didn't even manage that much in an easier version of the System. You should be proud. But if you ever want to talk about it..."

"I know who to call. Don't worry." Jonny managed a real smile. He wasn't about to admit the less-than-copacetic dreams that had come more than once since his exposure to ZERO, but he also knew they were nothing he couldn't handle with time and the help of his family. As Hadji had said, he just needed to let his mind heal itself. Compared to what it could have been, it was pretty minor.

They stood in comfortable quiet for a few moments before Quatre cleared his throat meaningfully.

"So, I've been meaning to say something to you. You were the one who came up to get me out of Wing Zero when we returned to the hangar," Quatre said softly. "I know you saw it." He held up his wrist.

"And I figured it out," Jonny understood. "That's how you hooked yourself into Horus. You told us back at the compound that there was one module for Horus that nobody had access to but you, that nobody knew where it was. And if I've learned anything about you, you wouldn't let it be anyplace you couldn't control it yourself at all times to ensure its safety. Plus, I can't imagine you would hook Wing Zero to Horus through a virtual connection that could be traced. So, what else would you have hooked in when you were in there but that?"

Quatre fixed him with a warning look and Jonny held up his hands.

"Oh, don't worry! I won't tell anybody where it is. It's not like I know where the other ones are anyway."

"Even Trowa doesn't know the final Horus module is here," Quatre smiled a little as he tapped the watch-face. "And he's the one who gave me this watch. Or, um, gave me most of the watch. I just took out some of the non-essential bits and replaced them."

Jonny burst out laughing. "So if it got out, you'd be in a whole other kind of trouble."

"Maybe," Quatre's smile widened. "Though Trowa is wonderfully casual about such things. No, I'm more worried about Wufei lecturing me about the risks. He's so very protective, you know."

"I'd noticed," Jonny said wryly.

Jonny's eyes drifted to where Wufei was chatting animatedly with Hadji, both with heads bent together as they discussed something with great interest. He could very much imagine the Preventers agent being upset with Quatre for having such an important weapon or system or whatever it was in what he would argue was a vulnerable position. Not that he figured such a thing would stop Quatre.

Hadji laughed at something Wufei said and Jonny felt himself smiling at how contented his brother seemed to be.

"You remind me of us sometimes," Quatre spoke into his thoughts.

"Oh?"

"You're always thinking about them," he nodded to Hadji. "Your family. You watch for them all the time. The way we do. Even if we're in the heat of a battle or apart on different missions, we're always thinking about each other. We fight for each other. You fight for them."

"I guess so," Jonny shifted his feet. "When I was younger, just before the wars, I thought I wanted to have my own adventures. And I got into plenty of them. But they're always better with at least Jess and Hadj with me. And dad and Race too."

"There's nothing wrong with looking for yourself. Independence can lead you back to where you should be," Quatre met his gaze. "In your case, I'd say the more you look, the more you'll find your way home."

"I said something like that to Hadji weeks ago. I told him it was okay if he needed to look for himself far away from home but he didn't have to do it alone. That I'd go with him."

"I wouldn't worry," the blond Arab smiled. "I think he found what he needed."

"He did?" Jonny turned to him in surprise. Quatre nodded.

"Hadji is different from the rest of you, but you're different from each other, too," he answered. "He's learned more about his gifts in the last few weeks than I would estimate he has in several years, just as I have."

"Yes, but –"

"So, in finding out who he is and what he can do, he has also learned about those of us in even stranger alliances. Hadji is different from you and the others. But I am different from Wufei or Heero, too. And that doesn't drive us apart. It pulls us together. We are strong together _because_ we are so different. He doesn't fully realize it now, but give him a few days and ask him. I think Hadji will tell you he knows he is himself when he is with you and your family."

"You think so?" Jonny peeked back at his brother hopefully. In all the chaos of everything, he still had not forgotten his brother's uncertainty, not to mention his own.

Quatre raised an eyebrow at him. "Will you permit me to show you?"

Jonny had nodded before he fully realized what Quatre was suggesting, but he didn't pull away when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Jonny had never gone in much for meditation or the rest of Hadji's spirituality, but there was no denying the sense of "Hadji-ness" that came to him through Quatre. And that the spirit of his brother was entirely confident, comfortable, steady. He'd seen doubt in Hadji's eyes before, but now he felt none of it in his heart.

"He doesn't want to be anywhere but where he is," Quatre spoke into his awareness. "He doesn't know why yet, but give him a few days and he'll tell you himself, I think."

"I believe you."

Quatre removed his hand and smiled. "He's lucky to have you. Hang onto that. That brotherhood is powerful enough to change the world. Trust me. I should know."

And the two blonds understood one another perfectly.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Footnotes:
> 
> The first 4 sets of poetry are from One Thousand and One Nights.
> 
> The second set, the longer one is called "On Friendship" and has been attributed to Gibran Khalil Gibran.
> 
> Google and Wikipedia were my major heroes and resources for all things clothing-wise in this chapter, specifically http://www.greaterkashmir.com/news/2011/Oct/19/gentleman-of-yore-10.asp for Arabian clothing.


	37. Goodbyes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's not quite the end of the story, but it is an end, if that makes any sense. One more footnote at the bottom.
> 
> Enjoy!

"So, this is really it this time?" Jessie asked.

"Rashid and most of the Maganacs are going to see you home," Quatre answered. "Preventers have already been to your compound to sort out things there and sweep it for any new dangers. And we'll be in touch a few hours after you arrive, just to make sure."

"No repeats of last time's incidents to side-track us, huh?" Race grinned. "Gonna be downright boring now."

"I'm sure you can handle it," Trowa deadpanned.

"Besides," Benton elbowed his best friend cheerfully, "we'll see them in a few weeks. Quatre is going to be looking at some upcoming WEI projects and he's going to bring me one or two so I can consult."

"And unless some other nutbag decides to make a fuss," Duo popped up, "at least me and Tro will be with him. J-man and Red challenged me to a hoverboard contest, and as our dear Wazzit says, I can't back down from it without losing my honor."

At the unexpected silence, he looked up at Wufei. "What, no reaction?"

"I'm counting."

"Counting?" Jonny asked.

"I've adopted a system wherein I count to ten in order to dispel the impulse to strangle him. Winner suggested it might be more efficient."

"Or it will just give him time to think up more names," Trowa suggested.

"Really, Maxwell," Wufei frowned, "do you _ever_ get tired of that?"

"Nope!" He ducked a half-hearted swing and slung an arm around Jessie and Jonny. "I know you two understand me, even if no one else does," he lamented pathetically.

"Of course we do," Jessie said with mock sympathy. "We have to put up with Jonny."

"Hey!"

Bandit picked that moment to start barking gleefully, egged on by his person's indignation. Most everyone laughed.

"Hey, Quatre," Race said softly under the noise. When the blond turned to him, he gripped his shoulders tightly, almost hugging him. "Thank you. For...what you did for me."

"You're welcome," he said. He knew Race was not the sort to say more, nor to want a sentimental scene, so he gripped the hands that held him and, with a slight smile, gave a small push of his own gratefulness and friendship that could say what he wanted Race to hear.

"I think Bandit is going to miss you," Jonny said, holding him up in front of Heero.

"Can Bandit say bye-bye?" Duo leered. "Bow wow ruff ruff I luv you, Hee-chan!"

Bandit drew back at the face suddenly right there in front of him before letting out a loud yip. Then he lunged forward.

And stuck his tongue up Duo's nose.

"Good boy, Chibi," Heero said approvingly, reaching forward to stroke the pup's ears while Duo shrieked like a child. Trowa and Wufei exchanged glances with Jessie and Jonny and all four snickered.

"Hadji," Quatre said quietly amidst the chaos, stepping close to his friend. "Thank you. For everything." He glanced over to Trowa, who gave him a nod, before holding out his hand, raising his eyes to Hadji's with intensity.

"It is a wise man who knows that he is always where he is supposed to be. For both our sakes, I believe we have been where we were most needed. We are both very great fools, but as the great poet Emerson once said, 'heroism always feels and never reasons.' In you, my friend, I am grateful for both."

"What does that mean anyway?" Duo leaned over to Jonny.

"I have no idea."

"Quatre understands," Heero said, leveling a disdainful look at his fellow-pilot. "And you would too if you stopped to think. Which you never do, _baka_."

And indeed Quatre's face softened. Hadji met his gaze steadily, then took the offered hand. Almost at once, both twitched as if they had experienced a slight shock, locking up stiffly.

"Hadji?" Race called uncertainly.

"He is well," Wufei dismissed him. "They will return to us when they are ready. They have much to communicate that is not ours to share."

"For what it's worth," Benton said, turning to Wufei, "I want to thank you for taking care of my family. I know you didn't want to bring us along, but we appreciate the trust you showed us."

"And you showed great courage and strength against Surd when you had no choice but to face him alone. Winner's faith in you was not misplaced." Wufei raised an eyebrow. "It rarely is. Otherwise we would never have allowed him to bring you back into the hotel when he rescued your family."

"Yeah, next time you stay outside, Benton," Race wrinkled his face. "Leave it to the experts."

"You should. That's sound advice," Heero spoke up.

"And we'll be there," Duo said with sudden sincerity. "Next hotel-jacking, we'll be there."

"We know," Jessie smiled at him. "And I know you won't, but if any of you guys ever do want our help..."

"We'll call," Trowa finished.

Suddenly Dr Quest laughed, drawing all eyes. He cleared his throat to explain. "This all started because Quatre's sister thought he needed some parental influences in his life. And I think I can safely say I have utterly failed to provide that to any of you," he winked at his own sons before looking more clearly at the ex-pilots. "But perhaps this alliance is better for us all."

"Which, if you think about it, is probably what Quatre intended all along," Heero said smugly. At the dawning realization in Dr Quest's face, he smirked. "You shouldn't be surprised by now."

"I'm not," he answered with a sigh. "Not as much, anyway."

"Bringing people together is Quatre's true skill," Trowa said softly. Then he closed his eyes and began to recite:

> _"With conscious pride I view the band_  
>  Of faithful friends that round me stand;  
> With pride exult, that I alone  
> Can join these scattered gems in one:  
> For they're a wreath of pearls, and I  
> The silken cord on which they lie.
> 
> ' _Tis mine their inmost souls to see;_  
>  Unlocked is every heart to me;  
> To me they cling, on me they rest,  
> And I've a place in every breast:  
> For they're a wreath of pearls, and I  
> The silken cord on which they lie."

"I'd say that describes you very well." Everyone looked when Hadji spoke to see the pair returned to them. Quatre's face was slightly pink, but Hadji grinned widely. "Quite literally in fact are you the tie that binds, my friend."

"Not just me," Quatre replied. He smiled at Hadji, then turned his eyes to Jonny and his family. "There's other ties that bind here, just as strongly."

"The endless waltz," Jonny remembered. "The pattern you're working on breaking."

"What about it?" Jessie didn't follow.

"The only thing that ever really breaks a pattern is a new one. So if you're replacing war and peace and rebellion with something else, I think this thing," he waved at Quatre vaguely, which most interpreted as having to do with his empathy but Quatre himself caught the glance at his wristwatch, "is the right start. You've brought everything together. If you keep on connecting people and companies and governments and technology and everything, you'll make a new rhythm."

"And if you keep on delaying," came Wufei's voice, not cutting but certainly impatient, "you will miss your clearance for arrival on Earth."

"He's right," Race nodded. "It's time we ship out."

"Until we meet again," Quatre bowed to the Quests with his hands on his heart. He grinned at them warmly as he stepped back into where the other pilots had waited in an unconscious formation that was now complete.

"Take care, all of you," Benton offered. He looked over the five faces and found himself smiling. "You are always welcome with us. Any time."

Heero and Wufei both bowed to him as was their way, Trowa inclined his head, and Duo bounced on his heels cheerfully. When Benton's eyes fell on Quatre, he remembered the first time he'd seen him – how much had changed! And how little. Even now, he still considered this heir to the Winner legacy remarkable. Just...moreso. More than he'd ever expected. They all were.

With a proud gait, then, Dr Quest turned and led the way into the shuttle that would carry his family home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Footnote:
> 
> The two stanzas from which the title of this story was drawn are called "On His Friends" and are by Meskin Aldaramy.


	38. Epilogue 1 - Closure

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A few tiny things to say:
> 
> This is the first of the two epilogues, one for the Gundam team and one for the Quests. I needed to give them both an end, as well as a possible beginning if I ever came back to this crossover for a sequel. Also, my reference to Wufei and a certain stinging insect is just a quiet nod to my own allergy (that had the unexpected effect of giving me some of the ideas that wound up in this narrative when I was bedridden and medicined up to my eyeballs last summer). Lastly, this chapter I originally conceived as a oneshot, but realized fit far too well with this story's narrative. I do have a whole set of oneshots written, and I'll be posting them one a week for a while as I get more of the next big work done.
> 
> And I do have another massive GW fic in the works. Stay tuned.
> 
> Thank you everyone for the amazing support I've received on this story. It means worlds to me to have the feedback and the interest. This and the next chapter are for all of you.
> 
> Enjoy!

Duo had pleaded and insisted and cajoled and even guilted the four others for two days until at last they decided that they would follow him outside into the gardens. Not that any one of them had the beginnings of an idea what he intended, but if it would stop his bouncing, even Wufei was willing to take a stroll. The stoic disinterest was mostly for show anyway – they all knew the reason they hadn't left the Winner mansion on L4 was to spend time together and catch up on some rest. Still, resisting was expected.

"Tell me again why we're doing this," Wufei grumbled as he took off his jacket under the bright warmth of the L4 artificial sunlight.

"Because even you need a break from doom and gloom, Fei-dude," Duo grinned.

Wufei started to move to retaliate, but something caught his eye and he stopped. Quatre was looking at a planter filled with tiny ferns that, when he reached out to touch one, folded up as though startled. His face broke into a delighted smile and he immediately reached for another frond to see it close up as well. Wufei huffed and shook his head.

"You're a pain, Maxwell," he said. "But maybe you're not wrong. About the break, that is. My name is another matter."

"So now that we're here, what exactly are you expecting us to do?" Heero wanted to know.

"I dunno! Whatever! We just needed to get out, you know? Have fun? Like normal people." Duo grinned, throwing out his arms.

"When have _you_ ever been normal?" Trowa quipped.

"Ha ha."

"Oh, I don't know," Quatre put in suddenly. "Duo's got a point. We're in a beautiful private garden, we have time to spare, and we're friends. What would anybody else be doing right now?"

"Probably beating Maxwell to within an inch of his life," Wufei said darkly.

"Don't bark at Quatre for pointing out the obvious," Heero perked up defensively. He looked to the blond with a razor-quick expression, then turned back with a very slight smile. "I think you may be outvoted, Chang. You would do well to admit when you are being foolish."

"Are you deliberately baiting me, you…" the Chinese pilot tipped his head warningly. "You weakling," he finished a little lamely.

"Let's find out if I am or not," Heero's face twisted in predatory anticipation.

Within two minutes, Heero and Wufei were facing one another in a clearing of grass. Trowa stood between them to act as judge. Duo and Quatre sprawled on the ground nearby. Trowa signaled and at once the two began sparring in earnest.

"Go Hee-chan! Take him down! Wuffle-bear doesn't stand a chance!" Duo cheered.

"You know," Quatre looked across impishly, "if you really wanted to do that, it should be 'Hee-kun,' not 'Hee-chan.' 'Chan' is usually for girls or babies or puppies or something else cutesy."

"I know!" Duo said brightly. "That's what makes it so much fun!"

"I see."

"Anyway, you're one to talk."

"I can't imagine what you mean." Quatre looked the picture of innocence.

"You goaded them both into sparring," the braided pilot looked out from under his bangs at his friend, "and don't pretend. I know you better than that. You did something with Heero so he'd challenge Woozles."

"Well…"

"Just answer me this – why?"

"Because they'll never relax unless they posture first," he shrugged. "They both have to remind themselves how tough they are every now and then. When they're done they'll feel like it's okay to just be here."

"That your space heart talking?"

"Nope," Quatre winked. "Plain old instinct. Besides, I know them pretty well, too."

"Yeah."

They sat in companionable silence for another few minutes, watching Heero and Wufei try increasingly aggressive moves against one another. Trowa looked on impassively, ducking the occasional blow that was deflected wide. The air moved gently through the trees and the light played brightly on the scene.

"Think they've got it out of their systems yet?" Duo asked abruptly.

"Um," Quatre observed, then nodded. "Close enough. Why?"

"You'll see!"

Duo sprang to his feet and, silent as a cat, sprinted across the grass. So engaged were Heero and Wufei in their own little private combat they didn't notice his approach until it was way too late. Duo hit them both running, driving them into Trowa, who either was also caught off-guard or didn't bother to resist. In a tangle of arms and legs and shouting in various languages, Duo's momentum sent them over the edge of a nearby incline, with him laughing as they went rolling down the hill.

Quatre rose from his place, shaking his head, and he tentatively made his way down to where his four friends had landed on the grass. They were all breathing pretty hard, and Duo had a bright smile on his face.

"So, why…?" Quatre began. But Duo's arm flashed out and he caught ahold of Quatre's wrist and gave it a yank.

A very un-Gundam-pilot-like squawk made its way out of the blond's throat as he was pulled into the heap. But he landed completely softly, Duo keeping his grip on his arm, Heero reaching up with his un-buried hand to catch his back, and he wound up with his head bouncing softly off Trowa's chest. Duo curled up to him like a puppy, tucking his head under Quatre's arm and cuddling down in a nest of bodies. Quatre's legs were across Wufei's torso, while Heero was somehow reversed so he was resting his head on Wufei's shoulder, even though his legs were caught under Trowa.

There was a very long quiet as they remained there, shuffling around just slightly until they could all lie comfortably. Nobody spoke – there was nothing worth saying. What little they may have needed to communicate passed between them wordlessly like the light through the trees.

A wasp began lazily investigating them, and Wufei tensed, not much, but enough to be perceptible. Without a word, Trowa reached out and cupped a hand around the creature, carefully redirecting it to a patch of flowers on the other side of the pile. As it wandered away, Wufei breathed out a deep breath. Even in a pile in the grass, even having never until this moment admitted that particular weakness to anyone, he was safe. They were _all_ safe.

Duo fell asleep almost at once, curled against Quatre's side as he was, and not long after began twitching. But he only gave one real spasm before Heero leaned his head over, knocking their skulls together lightly. He said something low in Japanese that got a little lost under all that hair, but Duo immediately quieted, snuggling even closer to Quatre, bumping his nose on the blond's chest. Trowa huffed and carefully extracted Duo's braid where it was pinned beneath him so that it could lie without being pulled. Then he ran his hands through Quatre's hair for good measure.

Heero and Wufei got into a very intense but silent war with an ant crawling nearby, trying to coax it onto the other person's face, but their shuffling back and forth started to disturb Quatre so he poked them both in the ribs. They poked him in retaliation, but he did not respond; having dozens of sisters makes one immune to tickling by necessity. Trowa, however, was not so lucky. But he scooted so Quatre's chest was between his stomach and the ones who were trying to make him shriek as he would have if he hadn't been so reluctant to disturb Duo. Not to mention it was very undignified.

Trowa started sketching things in the air with his free hand, tracing the curves of clouds and turning them into everything from pictures of lions to tactical maps of past battles fought. When Quatre began to hum very softly, he began instead scoring the music along with him. Heero looked around, his dark blue eyes sharp and suspicious for a moment, before leaning his head against Wufei's shoulder again and allowing himself to fall asleep to the sound. Trowa started up a low baritone counterpoint to Quatre's humming, moving his hands through the air to it, conducting or just experiencing the tune. Wufei sighed and slowly the tension seemed to bleed out of him and he let his head tip sideways and his eyes close.

After what felt like a long time, Trowa's hands dropped so that he had one on Quatre's chest and the other he tucked under his own head. Quatre shifted the melody to something low and sweet, until he was the last to remain awake, humming a lullaby of peace and contentment to his four friends. Only when he had finished, and when he was assured they were all truly asleep and fully relaxed, did he allow himself the slightest bounce of satisfied laughter, soundless but his stomach shook with it. Duo curled up more tightly and Heero shifted a bit so his arm could flop over Quatre's ribcage.

Quatre made sure his watch was programmed to vibrate when the alarm he'd set went off, then curled one hand over Trowa's and buried the other in the end of Duo's braid which was just mixing itself in Heero's wild hair. Wufei moved so his hand was resting across Quatre's ankles, and the warm happy peace of it was overwhelmingly potent. Quatre smiled into it, finally allowing his eyes to flutter closed even as he passed the feeling to the others unreservedly, that their hearts might know their shared comfort and safety even in sleep in his care.

Once all five had been killers of the first order, terrorists and assassins and thieves, trusting of no one and safe nowhere. Then they had found one another and warily come to an agreement, and eventually, an accord. From there, it had been short steps to allies to comrades to friends. Now they were more still – they were not five young men with five scarred minds. They had become one whole, five pieces of a greater center in which they could find what individually they had always sought: a family, a home, a reason to believe.

How far they had come.


	39. Epilogue 2 - Foundations

"Jonny?" Hadji took a step back in surprise. The last thing he had expected was to see his adopted brother in the upstairs room of the lighthouse, his usual place for meditation, apparently waiting for him.

"Sorry to just barge in," Jonny began by apologizing, turning away from where he had been looking out the broad windows. "I didn't want to bug you when you and dad were cataloging all the pottery shards from the dig, and I figured you'd be here after that anyway."

"How did you come to that conclusion?" Hadji wanted to know.

"'Cause the guy on the dig-site writing the notes you were using has world's smallest handwriting and refused to type them up on an actual computer. If it were me staring at his chicken-scratch in miniature, I'd need a nap to clear my headache after three hours. If it were you, I figured you'd need to meditate."

"Well reasoned," Hadji approved with a smile. "May I take it then that you are wishing to speak with me?"

"More...I wanted to know what was in your letter?"

"Sit," Hadji invited him with a smile. "I don't mind telling you."

As it had turned out, in the half-year since their adventures with the Gundam pilots, they had seen rather a lot of Quatre. At first it had seemed like coincidence, but after the third time he showed up, just _happening_ to be in the area they were right around the second Tuesday of the month, the Quests had gotten wise to their friend's unstated plan. In fact, they'd started making a point of spending the second week of the month near something worth the attention of either WEI or Preventers to spare him an unnecessary trip. Not that he ever would have thought his visits with them were anything but ends unto themselves.

On these visits, Trowa was almost always present, and often Heero turned up as well, mainly because Heero was the one most frequently on Earth. But the last visit had actually been Duo and Heero rather than the expected Arab – Quatre had sent each of the Quests a long letter apologizing for his absence and explaining that he and Trowa were off on Preventers business.

Jonny happened to know what was in Jessie's letter, along with his own, obviously. Jessie had read hers with wide eyes before showing it to him. Although they were different, Quatre obviously taking the time to write to each of them specifically, they had the same paragraph at the end.

> _"I'm supposed to relay something to you from Wufei, since he is on a mission of his own and can't do it himself. I think you know that we were all very impressed with your actions on the occasion that brought us together initially. The truth is that, while we malign the Preventers recruits, all of them are pretty good. In most cases Wufei and Heero and Trowa (and sometimes I myself) have trained them directly. But there are things none of us can teach – loyalty, ingenuity under duress, composure and hope when there seems to be no answer, and a true belief in peace, in defending the defenseless. And you have those, my friend. Wufei wants me to tell you that, when you are ready, if you ever wish a position with Preventers, he will accept you on his team. Understand that Wufei does not have a 'team' other than the four of us. It's high praise from him whether or not you take him up on it someday. But, if I may say so, I think the Earth Sphere would be safer with your hands to help guard it."_

Jonny and Jessie had both been speechless, and then honored, and then excited. Neither really knew if they intended to accept what had been offered, but learning that they had earned what was effectively a place beside the five Gundam pilots, even if they could never truly be one of their number, was no small thing.

But Hadji had not shared his letter, and when Jonny and Jessie told him and their fathers about what Quatre had said, he had not volunteered any details of his own. It had eaten at Jonny for two days before he resolved to find out what his brother was not saying.

"I don't want to get into your private stuff," Jonny said as he settled on the thick carpet and wondered fleetingly how Hadji could sink down so gracefully when he was knocking about like a fat raft docking. "But you haven't said anything and I just wondered..."

"As always, my friend, I am appreciative of your concern for my well-being," Hadji picked up the thread when Jonny trailed off uncertainly. "I am not offended by you curiosity. And I am not hurt by the offer you and Jessie both received."

"Then what is it?"

"My letter from Quatre was rather different from yours," Hadji answered. "Will it relieve your mind to know that I, too, have a Preventers uniform waiting for me should I wish it?"

"Sure!" Jonny almost cheered. Then, "But why didn't you say anything then?"

"Because of what Quatre wrote after that." He reached over to a nearby table and pulled out a few pages that had been under a book. "Here. I have no secrets in this from you, Jonny."

Jonny opened the letter almost reverently, knowing how much trust he was being given. He barely glanced at the pages until he found the paragraph he himself had also received. He read on from there.

> _"But though I think you could make a real difference for the peace in this way, Hadji, I believe you will agree with me that there is another place you may find a better fit for your heart. Jonny mentioned 'connections' when we parted at L4. I have been considering this for many weeks and I have an offer of my own for you, if you wish to consider it. The expansion of my gift and its subsequent uses have brought me an awareness not only of the asset I now share with the others, but of the importance of understanding it fully. I am likely not the only person in the Earth Sphere with such a gift. Ezekiel Rage proved the danger of uncontrolled psychic power. There is no telling if or when another like him will rise up and put his gifts to the intent of causing harm._
> 
> _"It is for this that I approach you, Hadji. I am in the process of completing plans to begin a small, little-known branch of either WEI or Preventers (it depends on how much control Une will give me) specifically to research and assist people with such new types of abilities so that we can be better prepared not only to counter another threat, but to help those who, like me, are overwhelmed by their inborn gifts. If you are willing, I would ask you to serve as acting president of such a division. I realize our abilities are patently different, but there is no one else I can trust, and no one else with such a profound respect and skill for this task than you. I am needed elsewhere, though I would of course be a part of it, as will Wufei and the others. But we need someone who can be there every day, whose touch will lead the research with integrity and wisdom. I have only one person I can name I would want in this role permanently. Please consider it, my friend."_

"Oh." Jonny put down the letter, wonderingly. "I...that's...wow."

"That is akin to my own reaction," Hadji grinned. "He makes a convincing point. And it is true that my studies and disciplines have brought me rare insight into these 'new types' of people and abilities, as he says. And the investigation of such is at once scientific and metaphysical, neatly bridging the gap of my own interests."

"Hadj, it sounds perfect!" Jonny realized delightedly. "It's exactly what you _should_ be doing!"

"Is it?" He looked away, his face crumpling.

"Why aren't you sure?" Jonny leaned forward in concern.

"I am not entirely certain my ways are compatible with the methods of our friends. More than once in our adventures together, necessity forced me to take actions that were completely against my own code of ethics. My path should perhaps not be theirs."

"Hadj, would you say that I know you pretty well?"

"Yes, I would, Jonny."

"Good. 'Cause I can tell you don't really mean that."

"I..." Hadji's face was wide with surprise for a moment before he huffed a small laugh. "Really?"

"Really," Jonny smiled. "I'm not saying it didn't bother you. Like what you said to Duo. You _don't_ like the ends justifying the means. But I also think you've changed your perspective a little since then. Even if you haven't, I can always tell when you don't really believe something, even if you're the one saying it."

"Perhaps you are correct. Understanding our friends and the choices they were forced to make as Gundam pilots caused me to recognize a certain...disconnect between the purity of my ideals and the expediency of reality. It is all well and good to hold myself to gilded standards, but in the face of saving lives, my platitudes are meaningless even to myself. I am still finding my way in this, of course. And I'm not saying I will ever be wholly comfortable using my gifts in an offensive capacity, but then, I expect Quatre would be unlikely to do the same either except under truly extreme circumstances. And if anyone were to understand and support my reticence, I am assured it would be he. You're right. It's a convenient answer to the wrong question."

"Then what really bothers you about this?" Jonny wanted to know.

"Honestly?" he looked up contritely. Hadji took a breath and met Jonny's eyes. "We have not lived separate lives since we were children. You have worked so hard to ensure I was a part of your family, and you have succeeded for both our sakes. But to do this, to take on this role, I would be apart from you, from Dr Quest, from Race and Jessie. I know I said I might need to seek my own truth, but I do not know if I wish to do it without the irrepressible Jonny Quest at my side."

Jonny breathed in with understanding and suddenly lunged forward. Unfortunately he miscalculated slightly, so instead of just grabbing Hadji, he knocked him off-balance. But he caught Hadji's shoulders and righted them both before pulling him into a tight, strong hug. Not the half-hug of overly proud men. This was the warmest of embraces, the one he had learned from his father, the one saved for family with whom there are no boundaries and no fears.

"Hadj, you're my brother here in the lighthouse or on L4 with Quatre and WEI or on Mars for all I care. You're the one who tried to teach me all about how time and space are an illusion, right? You're a Quest _here_ and _now_ , so you'll be a Quest wherever you go. I'll be there when you need me."

He released him to the length of his arms and met the dark eyes that were wide with mixed emotions.

"Plus, you're seriously underestimating those guys if you think we'd never see each other. If I'm working with Wufei, I'll definitely be around to bug you all the time! We don't need their crazy empathic bond to be close wherever we go."

"You are very wise, Jonny," Hadji finally said. "And it does my heart good to know yours is so steady and strong."

"Hey. What's mine is yours, Hadji. It's been that way since we were little, like you said. I'll be steady for you anytime."

They shared a brighter smile then, and Hadji felt some of his own nervousness drain out of him. It was an inevitable situation he would have to face – eventually their family would separate and each would go their own ways, all but Dr Quest and Race who seemed unlikely to ever really be apart or to leave the compound they called home. But Hadji had always imagined the five of them together. He had at last found himself wholly in the context of his family; perhaps it was fate to relearn that lesson once again on his own.

As if reading his thoughts, Jonny said, "Think about it this way. The five Gundam pilots aren't always together. Well, Quatre and Trowa, sure. But the others are close even if they don't live together. And I think they see each other more than they let on to anybody. We can do that. Jessie and I will save the world, dad will sit here and figure it out with Race to watch his back, and you'll never be far if we need you."

"And we have some time yet before we take them up on these offers anyway," Hadji found his voice after a moment. But he indulged himself by leaning his forehead on his brother's to breathe deeply for a moment. Jonny was right. He would lose nothing and gain so much if he allowed himself to be taken where he was needed.

"But right now I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be," he said, raising his head. Then, with a quirk of smile, repeated Jonny's words from months prior, "With the best brother a guy could ever ask for."

Jonny smiled incandescently.

"Jonny! Hadji! Where _are_ you guys?" came Jessie's shout from below. "You're gonna be late! And it's lasagna tonight, so the lateness penance of dishes will be a pain if you don't hurry up!"

What could they do but pull each other to their feet and race for the door the way they had a decade ago, with the same laughter pulling at them and echoing behind them? Ten years ago they had been children, forever united in the world against anything that might divide them. It was just as true now as it had been them, but they were so much more now. So much stronger and surer and wiser. And the world that called them now held places for them where they could find themselves, together.

How amazing their future would be.


End file.
